MEPs call for "anti-oligarch" law, 14 May 2020

MEPs have called for an EU law to prevent oligarchs and land-grabbers drawing on EU subsidies at the expense of small and medium-sized farming businesses. The new law should "cap subsidies per natural person, introduce a clear register of real company owners and prevent land theft”, said European Peoples' Party (EPP) Group's Monika Hohlmeier MEP, Chairwoman of the European Parliament's Budgetary Control Committee.

“EU funds are systematically abused by wide-spread oligarchic or criminal structures in some Member States. The conflict of interest of the Czech Prime Minister Babiš and other possible oligarchic structures are the ultimate call for a change in EU rules on how much money one single person can receive from the EU budget”, said Hohlmeier, who authored a parliamentary report on the European Commission's management of EU funds.