The European Ombudsman has opened an inquiry into how the European Parliament handled documents concerning undisclosed financial support received by Swedish lawmaker Alice Teodorescu Mawe, investigative platform Follow the Money reported on Monday.
Teodorescu Mawe, a Christian Democrat and member of the European People’s Party group, declared earlier this year that she receives “ongoing financial support from a private donor related to personal security arrangements”.
She has not disclosed the donor’s identity or the amount involved, according to documents cited by Follow the Money.
The lawmaker has emerged as a prominent pro-Israel voice in the European Parliament and Swedish political debate. The Times of Israel has described her as Israel’s “most outspoken European ally”.
Follow the Money has also reported on her investments in German arms manufacturers and meetings with US technology company Palantir while she served on the Parliament’s Security and Defence Committee.
Transparency dispute
The Ombudsman’s inquiry follows a complaint by Follow the Money after Parliament refused to release correspondence between Teodorescu Mawe’s office and its Advisory Committee on the Conduct of Members.
Parliament reportedly cited privacy concerns and the need to protect its internal process for providing ethical advice to lawmakers.
Follow the Money argued that the correspondence was needed to establish how Parliament applied its rules and whether the financial arrangement complied with its Code of Conduct.
The Christian Democrats’ party secretary has previously said there was no conflict of interest and that Parliament had approved the arrangement, according to Follow the Money. The precise details of what Parliament approved are at the centre of the transparency dispute.
The Ombudsman will also examine Parliament’s practice of sending decisions on access-to-documents requests by physical mail.
Neither Parliament nor Teodorescu Mawe responded to Follow the Money’s requests for comment, according to the investigative platform.
The Ombudsman’s recommendations are not legally binding, although EU institutions generally follow them.
