WRITTEN QUESTION P-1807/03 by Herbert Bösch (PSE) to the Commission. Commercial relations between the Commission and the Planistat Group.
Date: 2003-05-23
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European Anti-fraud Office, European Commission, contract, economic offence, fraud against the EU, payment, services company, trade relations

20.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 70 E/57

OLAF’s charge is manifestly based on a report by the Internal Audit Unit of the Statistical Office, Eurostat,
which was drawn up as long ago as September 1999. The report claimed that Planistat Europe SA had
issued large numbers of bogus invoices and had been involved in the creation of slush funds on which
Eurostat officials were subsequently able to draw.

Despite these accusations, the Commission failed to terminate its business relations with Planistat Europe
SA. The Commission’s answer to my Written Question E-1283/02 states that the company received
EUR 670 195 from the Community budget in 2000 and EUR 1 607 118 from the 2001 budget.

Can the Commission explain why Eurostat’s business relations with Planistat Europe SA were not
terminated?

Can it explain why Commissioner Schreyer did not herself
intervene in order to stop any further
payments, once the audit referred to above had been submitted to the Directorate-General for Financial
Control, which operates under her authority, in spring 2000?

Can the Commission indicate the total amount of payments received by Planistat Europe SA from Eurostat
over the last ten years, as well as the additional amount paid out of the slush funds referred to above?

Can the Commission also indicate the scale of payments received by Planistat Europe SA from other
Commission departments?

(2004/C 70 E/060)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1807/03

by Herbert Bösch (PSE) to the Commission

(23 May 2003)

Subject: Commercial relations between the Commission and the Planistat Group

On 19 March 2003 the European Anti-Fraud Office OLAF laid a charge against Planistat Europe SA before
the Paris public prosecutor. The company is accused of being involved in fraudulent practices and, by
means of fictitious accounts practices, of having helped set up illicit accounts, which were then able to be
used by Eurostat officials.

The Commission’s Directorate-General for Financial Control has apparently been aware of this state of
affairs since spring 2000.

Could the Commission indicate why commercial relations with companies in the Planistat Group were not,
however, broken off and new contracts were even awarded?

On its Internet site the Planistat Group states that it has a turnover of millions in its work for the
Commission, and that it works for the following Commission Directorates-General and services:

(cid:1) External relations DG;

(cid:1) Entreprise DG;

(cid:1) Development DG;

(cid:1) Research DG;

(cid:1) Energy and Transport DG;

(cid:1) Trade DG;

(cid:1) Delegations;

(cid:1) Forward Studies Unit;

(cid:1) SCR (Joint External Relations Service);

(cid:1) TACIS (EU Technical Assistance to the Commonwealth of Independent States);

(cid:1) Industry DG;

C 70 E/58

Official Journal of the European Union

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20.3.2004

(cid:1) Health and consumer protection DG;

(cid:1) Environment DG;

(cid:1) Information Society DG;

(cid:1) Taxation and Customs Union DG;

(cid:1) Eurostat;

(cid:1) PHARE;

(cid:1) European Development Fund.

Can the Commission confirm this information? Could the Commission state what sums have been paid to
the Group over the last 10 years, with a breakdown by financial year and Directorate-General?

(2004/C 70 E/061)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1978/03

by Gabriele Stauner (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(10 June 2003)

Subject: Termination of business relations between the Commission and Planistat

On 19 March 2003, OLAF filed charges against the Planistat Europe SA group of companies with the Paris
Public Prosecutor. Planistat stands accused of being involved in fraudulent activities, including helping to
create slush funds by issuing bogus invoices and, subsequently, receiving payments from those slush funds.

On its Internet site, the Planistat Group claims to have done business with the Commission worth several
millions.
the Commission: External
Relations, Industry, Enterprise, Consumer Protection, Development, Environment, Research, Information
Society, Energy and Transport, Taxation and Customs Union, Trade, and Eurostat.

it works for the following directorates-general at

It claims that

Can the Commission confirm this information? Can it indicate the amount of the payments made to this
group of companies since 1993?

Can the Commission forward a list of the contracts with the Planistat Group which were still in force in
March 2003 when OLAF laid its charges?

Can the Commission indicate when it stopped payments to Planistat?

Can it indicate when it terminated or will terminate contracts still in force?

Can the Commission indicate when it began verifying all the contracts concluded with Planistat with a
view to identifying further possible irregularities?

Joint answer
to Written Questions P-1705/03, P-1807/03 and P-1978/03
given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(22 September 2003)

As a matter of principle, the awarding of new contracts is subject to the provisions of the new Financial
Regulation (1) in force since 1 January 2003. This also applies to the contracts with Planistat.

No recommendation was made in the audit report on the Datashops that the firm should be excluded
from future contracts.