German foreign ministry in crossfire over luxury properties in Brussels

9 months ago 31

Germany’s Foreign Ministry has been heavily criticised by the Federal Court of Auditors for wasting taxpayer money by acquiring lavish properties for its diplomatic representation in Brussels, according to a report published on Thursday.

In 2021, the Foreign Ministry bought “a park-like property in Brussels with a lavishly fitted out building” for around €8 million, according to the report. After renovation, it will host all three German diplomatic representations in Brussels.

“The Foreign Ministry has neither demonstrated the need for the purchase nor has it complied with economic efficiency and economy requirements,” the report states. It urges the foreign ministry to sell the unneeded properties again “with as little loss as possible”. “This applies in particular to the residence property in Brussels, which was acquired in breach of budgetary law,” the report stated.

Sources within the Foreign Ministry justified its actions by arguing that “the need for a new residence for the EU ambassador has existed since 2007. Since then, the Ministry has been looking for a suitable property without success.” “The property in question was identified as a suitable property that meets the needs,” ministry sources told Euractiv.

However, the auditors stated that in 2007, it was planned that the official part of the PermRep’s existing residence was to be expanded instead of acquiring a new property. However, according to the auditors, the plans were not pursued further, and reasons against the expansion were not documented.

With 15,000 square metres, the new property is up to six times larger than the current properties. The residence is additionally equipped with an indoor swimming pool and a tennis court, adding to the maintenance costs.

The sources explained to Euractiv that “for a residence for the Permanent Representative to the EU […] only the acquired property could be considered at that time to cover the requirements.“

In general, it is not unusual for the influential member states to have locations in Brussels dedicated to European politics, keeping close contact with civil society, interest groups, and politicians to represent their national interests accordingly.

Nonetheless, the auditors complained that “for years, the Foreign Ministry has been disregarding the legal requirements for economic efficiency and frugality when purchasing and maintaining its properties abroad.”

The report also shows that the Brussels case is not the only one.

A €5 million property had been bought in a “foreign mission in the Middle East” to build a German School. The only problem is that “the property cannot be built on because it is only designated as garden land.”

The report summarises that the ministry spent around €150 million on operating, maintaining and equipping properties abroad in 2022. An additional €66 million was dedicated to construction measures. “However, many properties are also in need of refurbishment. The Foreign Ministry has estimated the amount of the refurbishment backlog for its properties abroad in 2022 to be around €2.5 billion.”

(Kjeld Neubert| Euractiv.de)