Parliament puts report with allegations against CSU deputy online

Suspicion of fraud

Parliament puts report with allegations against CSU deputy online

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office wants to investigate whether CSU deputy chairwoman Angelika Niebler misused EU money. Now, for the first time, there are details about the case in an official document.

The European Parliament has published the committee report, which was previously classified as confidential, on the fraud allegations against the CSU deputy chairwoman and MP Angelika Niebler. Accordingly, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office has evidence that Niebler may have wrongly billed travel expenses for trips to Strasbourg and Brussels. In addition, assistants may have been temporarily employed for private purposes or for tasks that had nothing to do with their mandate as MEPs.

Another point mentioned is that Niebler is accused of having an assistant paid with EU funds who worked exclusively for a former CSU EU MP. According to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, the alleged actions could constitute the criminal offense of fraud.

The Legal Affairs Committee’s report is controversial because, despite the serious allegations, it recommends that the full assembly of Parliament reject an application by the public prosecutor’s office to lift Niebler’s parliamentary immunity. The recommendation is explained in particular by the fact that it cannot be ruled out that the information about Niebler’s possible misconduct could come from a person who could have political motives to damage Angelika Niebler’s reputation.

The report also criticizes the fact that the public prosecutor’s application is partly inaccurate. It was drawn up by Polish MP Marcin Sypniewski, a member of the right-wing ESN group. The MEPs from the German AfD also belong to this group.

Meanwhile, the committee report is causing outrage in investigative circles and among politicians from the Left and Greens. It argues, among other things, that no ordinary citizen will be protected from independent investigations simply because information about a possible crime comes from a person who may not be well-disposed towards them or who could even benefit from reporting it. This does not apply especially if incriminating documents are available.

The final decision on whether to lift Niebler’s immunity now lies with the plenary session, which will meet again in mid-May. If the majority of MPs there follow the recommendation of the Legal Affairs Committee, the investigations in the case could not be continued for the time being. Niebler himself calls the allegations inaccurate, but has left further questions about the case unanswered.

According to information from the German Press Agency, Niebler’s behind-the-scenes defense strategy is primarily aimed at casting doubt on the credibility and integrity of the main witness – and thus preventing the immunity from being lifted. The politician from Munich has been a member of the European Parliament since 1999 and is also co-chair of the CDU/CSU group there.