2018 discharge: 2nd draft reports for the Council and EESC
On 01.10.2020, CONT Members voted the second draft reports for the Council and European Council and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) in relation to the 2018 Discharge procedure. For both reports, adoption in Plenary on October II 2020.
In relation to the Council and European Council, the decision to grant discharge for 2018 was postponed in May 2020, similar to what was done in previous years. Following, a second draft report was redacted by the Rapporteur, in which Mr Zdechovský recalls shortly that the Council has refused to cooperate in the discharge procedure for ten years and that Parliament has refused to grant discharge. However, the Rapporteur is confident that the upcoming negotiations with the Council related to the discharge procedure will be fruitful.
As for the EESC, the decision was based on the outcome and recommendations of an investigation on harassment of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) to postpone discharge for 2018 in May 2020 in order to be informed on the measures taken to rectify the wrongdoings. Mr Zdechovský highlights and welcomes that the EESC initiated an in-depth assessment on the overall existing framework supporting its zero-tolerance policy towards harassment.