EU Financial Management

I agree with much of what my hon. Friend said, but there is also a history of employees in various organisations—not just the European Union— justifying behaviour that represents an unacceptable employment practice by saying that they are fulfilling their wider public duty. That does not always prove to be the case, because people have an axe to grind, a problem with management or their own agenda. All I am saying is that we must be careful not to generalise, without referring to people’s responsibility to abide by their contracts of employment. If we do not acknowledge their importance, we may as well not have contracts of employment. However, if people choose to disclose evidence that the European Union is seeking to cover up information that should be in the public domain or be available to democratically elected politicians, that has historically been an important part of getting organisations to face up to the difficulties and challenges confronting them. Ideally, as my hon. Friend suggested, the belief that it was management’s responsibility to take these matters seriously would be built into the culture of the Commission and other elements of the European Union. We will be able to improve the credibility of the EU only if we tackle these issues head on—if we are honest about them, rather than pretending that they do not exist or trying to hide them. Ultimately, that will do nothing to enhance the reputation of the EU or the relationship between the EU and the taxpayers of Europe.