The European Commission is set to recoup €230 million in misspent EU funds on Thursday (2^nd May) under the clearance of accounts procedure.

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An announcement on the recovery of funds paid out under the Common Agricultural Policy was made in February this year. Though the UK suffered the most significant 'financial corrections' in February, accounting for 26 percent of the total fine by value meted out to 22 member states, the amount being claimed back on Thursday is smaller, standing at €10.1 million (£8.6m). 

The shortcomings were discovered during Commission auditing, carried out to monitor individual members states' payment agencies. The financial clearance decision announced on Thursday is made every year on 30th April, whereas the UK's previous penalties dated back over a period of several years.  

The Commission announced on Thursday that, as some of the outstanding €230m has already been paid back, the total fines amount to €227 million from 14 member states. The money recouped will go back into the EU budget.

Main financial corrections

As part of the latest decision, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, Greece, Spain, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and the UK will all have to repay funds. The most significant individual corrections are:

• € 107.6 million charged to Greece for non-compliant reduction of the minimum yield for the dried grapes and weaknesses in flock registers and on-the-spot checks for animal premiums;
• € 79.9 million charged to Poland for deficiencies in the check of the initial application and in the approval of the business plan for the Semi-subsistence farms measure;
• € 10.3 million charged to UK for weakness in identification of animals and in on-the-spot checks for the animal premiums.