The EU investment initiative, Juncker Fund is for the EU Commission, a figurehead. With guarantees from the EU budget of private billion of investment to be initiated. The works in the Large and Whole, informed the EU court of auditors on Tuesday. But he also sees shortcomings.
The EU investment initiative is a prestige project of the EU Commission by Jean-Claude Juncker . With guarantees from the EU budget should be initiated so that by 2020, investments in the amount of at least € 500 billion. Be encouraged about broadband and energy networks as well as medical research projects. The money is supposed to go to projects that get otherwise hardly any loans.
especially in higher-risk areas such as research and development investment in Europe in an international comparison, from the point of view of the authorities in Brussels are too low. This could reduce the competitiveness of the industry, especially to the United States and China, and ultimately the standard of living threaten.
A third, even without Juncker Fund
the Bottom line is that the EU investment initiative, an “effective Instrument” to raise money for investment in the EU, it was said by the auditors.
most of The investments were, however, larger EU-States in Western Europe have benefited from, in which there is already a well-established national promotional banks.
The European Fund for Strategic Investments (#EFSI) has been effective in raising finance for investments in the EU, but the amounts of investment mobilised may be may be overstated, according to a new report by the @EUauditors.
— European Court of Auditors (@EUauditors) 28. January 2019
part of the money went to projects, which can also be from other public or private sources have funded, i.e. without the Intervention of the Juncker Fund. The EU court of auditors speaks of around one-third of the projects.
EU Commission fights back
EIB chief Werner Hoyer defended himself against this criticism. It is not fair to compare in absolute terms, Malta and Germany, he said. As measured by the gross domestic product (GDP), Greece, Estonia, Portugal, Spain and Lithuania benefited the most. Some of the recommendations of the auditors were discussed in the planned follow-up programme InvestEU.
The report of the auditors do not portray the entire picture, said a spokeswoman for the EU Commission. It only projects had been implemented by mid-2018, a few points of criticism had been taken into account in the result already.
at The present time, had been mobilized by the EU investment initiative 371 billion euros of investment, this estimate is beyond any doubt, said the spokesperson. The auditors had examined only a small number of projects and then extrapolated.
The EU Commission had proposed in the past year, with InvestEU a follow-up program to work between 2021 and 2027 according to a similar principle. The EU Ministers of Finance indicated recently their support for it. (nag/sda)
Created: 29.01.2019, 16:30 PM
