Press Release: Protection of the EU’s financial interests in 2005: satisfactory performance

The Commission has published the 2005 annual report on the protection of the Communities’ financial interests and the fight against fraud. This is an area in which responsibility is shared between the European Commission and the Member States. The report gives a positive overall assessment of the 2001-2005 overall strategic approach. It highlights the measures taken in 2005 by the Member States and the Commission to improve the effectiveness of the fight against fraud. It also gives statistics on the irregularities reported by the Member States. Among the report’s salient features are a continued improvement in the quality and quantity of communications by the Member States, an increase in the total number of irregularities in the field of own resources, structural funds and PHARE and SAPARD funds, and a decrease in irregularities in agricultural and cohesion fund expenditure.