Three right-wing political groups in the European Parliament have twice attempted to establish a survey and inquiry committee on NGO funding as Transparency International has insisted on a MEP organising smear campaign against civil society and has launched a leak complaint.
German newspaper Welt Am Sonntag last week claimed that EU officials were allegedly secretly paid environmental NGOs to promote the bloc’s climate policy. The committee denied the claimThe secret payments and spokesman told Euronows that the executives will exercise high levels of transparency in providing funding to NGOs.
“The latest revelation released by the German press about the dark link between the European Commission and environmental NGOs makes the formation of a parliamentary committee to investigate the so-called “Green Gate” scandal more urgent,” European conservative and reformist Carlo Fidanza said in a press release:
Hungarian Fides MEP to launch targeted information requests
Hungarian patriot MEPCsaba Dömötör told Euronows that he believes there is a need for more transparency in relation to the NGO contract with the European Commission.
“They fund a blindly ideologically driven agenda from taxpayer money, and we see that prices and burdens are paid by taxpayers,” Dömötör added: “The committee says it’s not a secret. It works for me too.”
The WELT allegations first surfaced in February, with a parliamentary committee in April voting an amendment from right-wing lawmakers trying to incorporate sharp criticism of EU funding for non-governmental organizations into the introduction of the Bullock’s 2023 budget.
Not only did it reject the joint proposal by Fidesz and France’s Rassemblement National, which denounced the “huge EU-NGO propaganda complex,” but the committee at the time also rejected a number of amendments submitted by Lawmaker Monika Hohlmeier of the Conservative European People’s Party (EPP).
Among these were the calls for the EU Audit Court (ECA) to specifically investigate the Life programme, a bloc’s funding tool for environmental projects on the ground.
The President’s meeting in the European Parliament will decide to establish a committee in Strasbourg next week. Two other right-wing groups, European patriots and sovereign states, also line up in support of the initiative. ESN chair Rene Aust told Euronows that the group supports an investigation into the misuse of public funds.
“The committee is paying activists to shape public opinion. This has adjusted democracy rather than neutral governance,” Oat said.
The status of the European People’s Party group is not clear, as not all MEPs share the position of Hohlmeier.
NGOs see coordinated attacks on their funding
Meanwhile, Nick Aiossa, director of the Transparency International EU, told Euronows that the claims of shadow lo for NGO committees have already been exposed.
“These are stories that have already been exposed to the circulating stories that have been circulating in February,” added Aiossa.
He said that the Civil Society Committee funding to participate in public debates is a good thing, and that sufficient transparency measures already exist. In April, Transparency International confronted the idea of the Board of Inquiry in an open letter.
“These coordinated attacks seen from this house over the past six months have three very clear objectives: to trust NGOs. They aim to distract NGOs and try to counter these false narratives in the press, but ultimately, the ultimate goal is to refund NGOs.
He said that a small circle of right-wing MEPs is responsible for leaking media-sensitive data, and that transparency will file legal complaints on the issue.
“We have access to the limited amount of confidential documents we use to leak to journalists as part of our smear campaign against NGOs. As these documents need to be processed because they are confidential, we have no explanation for these leaks, so we aim to file formal complaints on these documents.
How NGOs receive funding from the European Commission
At the heart of the latest media revelation on EU funding for environmental NGOs is life sales subsidies. These are part of the EU’s Life Programme, a budget of 5.4 billion euros (2021-2027) aimed at funding projects related to green innovation, circular economy, energy efficiency, nature conservation and pollution reduction. Approximately 15.6 million euros of this will be allocated to environmental NGOs via operating grants, and under this scheme individual organizations can receive up to 700,000 euros per year.
Grants are awarded through public calls with clear eligibility criteria, and NGOs are evaluated not directly by the Commission but by agencies such as the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environmental Enforcement Agency (CINEA).
Advocacy through lobbying is permitted, but is not required or directed under the grant.
Each grant includes a disclaimer that includes “views and opinions” that NGOs “does not necessarily reflect those of the European Union.” The grant terms are publicly available and there is no requirement that the applicant adjust the target with committee interest to receive funds.
In short, NGOs maintain full autonomy in how they use their money within legal and contractual boundaries. They are subject to transparency rules, need to maintain EU value and are audited on a daily basis. If they fail to implement their work program, the funds can be withdrawn.
While much of the surveillance relies on self-report, one of the system’s main pitfalls, the Commission has strengthened risk-based verification, following advice from the European Audit Court.
In April 2025, EU auditors labeled the committee’s funding process as “opaque” and warned of potential reputational risks. However, during a year of investigation into misconduct by NGOs or European Commission officials, it found no evidence.
As a result, last year, the Commission issued new guidance to prevent the use of EU funds for direct lobbying of EU institutions in accordance with these concerns.
Additional reports by Gerald Fortuna
