Accountability of European Investment Bank.How can Hungarian civil society take advantage.
Anna RoggenbuckCEE Bankwatch Network
www.bankwatch.org
European Investment Bank Set up in 1958 under the Treaty of Rome House bank of the EU, a tool for policies financing Owned by 27 EU member states Active in more than 130 countries all over the world Fund: Transport, energy, water, industry, banking, R&D, oil,
mining and gas, telecommunication,health and education, climate change mitigation and adaptation
Annual budget – approximately 70 bilion Euro
Institutional statuts and governance Operational independence - autonomous financial
body, legal personality on Luxembourgish legislation MS Ministers constitute its Board of Governors
(general directives for the credit policy of the Bank, increase the subscribed capital, approve the annual report, approve the rules of procedure)
Board of Directors (27+1) - non-resident, meeting 10 times per year
Management Committee – real decision – making body
How does the EIB work?
Tax
Loan Interest
Interest EIB Bonds
Tax payers
Borrowing Governments (EU and non-
EU)/ Companies
Investors, bond
holders
Member States
Subscribed capital
European Investment
Bank
Working within an institutional setup
Council of European Union
European Parliament
European Commission
European Court of Justice
Court of Auditors
European Ombudsman
OLAF
EIB policies
Core policies: • Statement of Environmental and Social
Principles and Standards (2009)• Complaints Mechanism Policy• Transparency Policy Sectoral policies:• Transport Lending Policy• Energy Policy• Water Sector Lending Policy
Standards of EIB operations1. Procedural standards: EIA, Habitat, IPPC,
Environmental Liability Directive, „Aarhus regulation”
2. Emission standards: IPPC, BAT, Water Framework Directive
3. Ambient standards related to accumulated pollution in air, water and soil
4. Biodiversity: Habitat and bird Directives, Ramsar, Bonn and Bern Conventions
5. Standards on access to information6. EU Chart on Fundamental Rights and UN
Universal Declaration of Human Rights7. Other social standards outside EU
Accountability mechanisms for EIB Complaints Office based on Complaints
Policy European Ombudsman Europan Court of Justice EU Parliament Petition Committee
Why it is worth to use accountability mechanisms? Low cost, quite fast Independence from national administration Compliance and problem solving functions Additional pressure on national administration A good tool to attract media and public
attention Impact on EIB’s policies, their interpretation
and bank behaviour in the future