Jan 13, 2020
Standing for a Union of values, but also a Union that adds value
Interview with Olivier Chastel, Member of the European Parliament
With 453 Members of the European Parliament starting their first term, the May 2019 EP elections brought many newcomers to the total of 751 MEPs. Many of these new MEPs bring a lot of enthusiasm, fresh ideas and new experience into the IXth legislature of the EP. One of them is Olivier Chastel, elected as MEP in the Renew Europe Group, who has 20 years of experience as an MP in the Belgian Parliament. He is also a new member of the Budgetary Control Committee (CONT), and in that capacity has already had meetings with ECA representatives. Some questions to this newly elected MEP and CONT member.
By Gaston Moonen
Belief in a Union of values
You have been a member of parliament before for several years, but at national level in Belgium. What made you decide to become a politician at EU level?
Olivier Chastel: Since I started in politics, I have always defended the European project with conviction. I am convinced of the benefit of the European Union for all citizens. I had the opportunity to discover the European process when Belgium held the Presidency of the Council in 2010. It was a real discovery. When the opportunity presented itself, I did not hesitate to put myself forward as a candidate on the European list of the Mouvement Réformateur. It is a logical next step for me to defend important issues at a new level of power. It makes sense to debate issues, such as research and development, technological innovation, education, climate change, migration issues, employment and access to employment for young people, and fundamental rights, at European level and we have a duty to reach agreement on them.
Is there a particular promise you made to your constituents, your voters, when you got on the EP ballot paper?
Olivier Chastel: I am committed to defending the European project in a global way, to making the European Union work, so that all citizens realise what the Union really does for us. The subjects I mentioned earlier are fundamental to the success of the European project. I have therefore undertaken to ensure that the European Union works more on the respect of values. I am thinking in particular of the financial penalty mechanism for non-compliance with the rule of law by a Member State, but also of strengthening the European Union’s fundamental programmes, such as Horizon 2020 or Erasmus +. The EU has to demonstrate its added value!
Having started as a new MEP this summer, what did you find most striking during these first months in office? What would you consider a main difference compared with your earlier work as member of parliament?
Olivier Chastel: These first few months have been intense, that’s for sure! For many of us a completely new legislative process must be absorbed and used. It is therefore about discovering and learning to work with new colleagues, within a brand new political group and finding your way in new buildings — and getting used to this great ‘transhumance’ to Strasbourg once a month for the plenary sessions. But so far, I find quite some similarities between the Federal Parliament in Belgium I know and worked in, and the European Parliament.
Covering the budget circle…to spent each euro wisely
For the IXth legislature of the EP, you are vice-chair of the Committee on Budgets and member of the CONT. The first is often considered to be at the front door of politics, the other more at the back door, when everything has been set and done. Where do you see the key synergies of being in both committees?
Olivier Chastel: Indeed, I am grateful to be sitting on very important committees and therefore to be able to see the very beginning of the EU budget on the one hand, and to debate in order to allocate funding in the best way for the well-being of the European Union and its functioning. On the other hand, there is budgetary control, which allows me to highlight the weaknesses in the EU budget of previous years. Membership of these two committees will enable me to provide expertise, so that the future budget really reflects political ambitions and electoral promises, so that European citizens understand what this budget is allocated to and why.
In a meeting of the CONT on 24 July 2019, your colleagues and you identified fraud and integrity as two of the key priorities for the CONT. For the hearings for new Commissioners, integrity and ethics are also in the spotlight. How would you describe the role of the CONT in this area? Which concrete actions can you foresee and what would you like to see the ECA deliver on this topic?
Olivier Chastel: We are at a crucial moment in the future of the European project. Citizens are demanding more transparency and visibility on the functioning of the Union. It is imperative to have committees that ensure that the budget is allocated and managed properly. Each euro has to be spent wisely!
On the other hand, having an institution like the ECA to verify this allows optimal control, but also and above all it allows us to strengthen our commitment to democracy, which lies primarily in the hands of the European Parliament. Discharge procedures are the ultimate opportunity for the European Parliament to take control and to make the wishes of European citizens heard. In the upcoming years, the fight against fraud, the creation and the role of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, audit efficiency and strong Key Performance Indicators will be the cornerstones of my work.
Ensuring transparency and ethical behaviour
Is there another topic which jumps to your mind where you think that particularly the ECA can contribute, is there a topic you want the ECA to excel in?
Olivier Chastel: I think the ECA does a remarkable job, not only with its annual reports but with its special reports as well. The ECA has to pursue its primary job, monitoring and auditing the various accounts of the European bodies. It has a major role to play as an independent watchdog of the financial interests of the EU and its management. The issues you referred to earlier are very important: transparency and ethics in the control of the European budget are tasks on which we must work together. The European Parliament needs the ECA to guarantee this to European citizens.
What do you expect to be the three key political issues for this new EP and the new Commission and what would you particularly like to focus on?
Olivier Chastel: Climate change will be a key issue for the coming years, clearly also for the Von der Leyen Commission. We must support the creation of a ‘climate bank’ — a bank that focuses 100% on ecological transition and promotes private and public sustainable development. We must strengthen our competitiveness and reduce our dependency on imported sources of energy — gas and oil. We must stop fiscal dumping within the EU. And we also need to provide a substantive response to the refugee crisis. In addition, I hope that the next few years will allow us to make progress on the effective implementation of gender equality in the European Union.
This article was first published on the 4/2019 issue of the ECA Journal. The contents of the interviews and the articles are the sole responsibility of the interviewees and authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Court of Auditors.
