Photo courtesy of Anadolu
Questions over undisclosed private funding received by Swedish member of the European Parliament Alice Teodorescu Mawe have prompted the European Ombudsman to examine how Parliament handled records related to the arrangement, according to investigative outlet Follow the Money.
The review centers on transparency rather than a finding of misconduct against Teodorescu Mawe. Earlier this year, the Christian Democrats lawmaker disclosed that a private donor was providing continuing financial assistance connected to her personal security, but neither the donor nor the amount involved was identified.
Follow the Money later sought correspondence between Teodorescu Mawe’s office and the European Parliament body that advises lawmakers on conduct and ethics. Parliament rejected the request, reportedly citing privacy considerations and the confidentiality of its internal advisory process.
The investigative outlet subsequently complained to the European Ombudsman, arguing that access to the records could clarify how Parliament interpreted its ethics rules when assessing the privately funded security arrangement. The inquiry will examine Parliament’s response to that records request.
Another administrative issue has been included in the review. According to Follow the Money, the Ombudsman will look into Parliament’s practice of communicating decisions on document-access requests through physical mail.
Teodorescu Mawe sits with the center-right European People’s Party and has become known for strongly supporting Israel. Follow the Money has also scrutinized her reported investments in German defense companies and meetings with US technology firm Palantir while she served on Parliament’s Security and Defence Committee.
Sweden’s Christian Democrats previously said the financial assistance did not constitute a conflict of interest and maintained that Parliament had approved the arrangement. The exact scope of that approval, however, has not been publicly established and is part of the broader dispute over access to the records.
The European Ombudsman investigates possible maladministration by European Union institutions but generally cannot impose legally binding decisions. No ethics violation has been established against Teodorescu Mawe based on the information provided, and Follow the Money reported that neither she nor the European Parliament responded to its requests for comment.
