Question for written answer E-005238/2021
to the Commission
Rule 138
Álvaro Amaro (PPE), Paulo Rangel (PPE), Lídia Pereira (PPE), José Manuel Fernandes (PPE), Maria da Graça Carvalho (PPE), Cláudia Monteiro de Aguiar (PPE)
Subject: The Portuguese Court of Auditors’ audit report on the ‘Portugal 2020’ partnership agreement
Portugal’s Court of Auditors has today published an audit report on the ‘Portugal 2020’ partnership agreement identifying the factors behind its low level of implementation and risks undermining the implementation of financing from the next MFF and RRP funds.
The report further states that in seven years ‘it has only been possible to implement nearly 60% of a total of around EUR 26 billion in European funding’ and thus warns of ‘the risk represented in taking up more than EUR 60 billion in the coming years, of which a large part (RRP) will have be implemented in a shorter time-frame than normal programming periods and involves complex investments’, and concludes that it is therefore fundamental to ‘exponentially multiply the absorption capacity of European funding’.
This low implementation rate is attributed to insufficient human resources in support structures, invitations to tender both dragging on too long and being unattractive, a lack of interest among potential beneficiaries, delays in obtaining authorisations and the slow processing of payment requests.
We therefore ask the Commission:
What view does it take of the report’s conclusions and what recommendations would it make to the Portuguese Government to improve implementation of EU funding?