Gold Plated and Diamond Encrusted - and YOU pay for it.

Spending agreed by the Gold Plated and Diamond Encrusted Crazy Rabbits running the EU totaled £94 billion of which 90% was "materially affected" by irregularities that included the improper award of contracts worth over £4 billion, Europe's Court of Auditors has found.

The following is from the Daily Telegraph: The findings come amid a heated debate over the size of the EU budget for next year and demands from the European Commission and Parliament to defy national austerity programmes by increasing Brussels spending by six per cent despite 16 years of critical reports by auditors.

16 years of critical reports! 16 YEARS!! And let’s be clear about this. It’s not just critical reports that say ‘fair, could do better etc’ For 16 years NO ONE has signed off the accounts as being correct. That is to say, that for 16 YEARS the accounts have been INCORRECT and no one is doing anything about it. Not a single person in a position of authority is ever going to grip this nasty nettle and sort it out. Why would they? It would be the end of their career.

So the people must act. The people must demand action.

The Coalition has declared that all Councils must publish all expenditure over £500. This is a good start and strikes a balance between disclosure and the administration of that disclosure.

BUT, what of our country’s expenditure with the EU. 

We, the tax payers, need to have these figures in black and white. The White Ferret would like to know the payment dates and how this money is sent to the EU.

1. Is it daily, monthly, quarterly etc
2. On what account is it held, who gets the interest?
3. Who handles the transfers, what are their fees?
4. Which currency do we pay in?
5. Do we, as a country, have a Euro Account run by a British Bank who make millions on the overnight money markets during the transfers? What is the arrangement?

Tuesdays report into the discharge of the EU's £102 billion 2009 budget highlighted "material errors" that affected 92 per cent [92%!!!] of spending, with particular concern expressed over worsening farm subsidy payments and shoddy public procurement rules.

"Error rates remain high," said Vitor Manuel da Silva Caldeira, president of the Court of Auditors, noting a slight improvement between 2008 and 2009. OMG! So it was higher in previous years!  "Errors come mainly from incorrect claims for payment and public procurement errors." A long way of saying theft and stupidity!

This is a big reason why we are broke as a country, why our banks don’t lend, why our businesses can’t borrow, why tuition fees will rise, why you and I struggle to pay our bills, because we are giving it all away to an organization that is unaccountable and will remain so until we demand change. So, the next time your council start telling you about the money they got from the EU ask them for full details and make the time today to contact your MP and ask them some of the questions above.

The White Ferret hates waste....... and the EU is the biggest waste of money above all!