View source for European Court of Auditors

{{Short description|Institution of the European Union}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{Infobox government agency
| agency_name     = Court of Auditors<ref name="UIA" />
| nativename      = 
| nativename_a    = 
| nativename_r    = 
| type            = Institutional
| logo            = 
| logo_width      = 
| logo_caption    = 
| seal            = ECA-logo.svg
| seal_width      = 
| seal_caption    = Official emblem
| formed          = 1977
| date1           = 
| date1_name      = 
| date2           = 
| date2_name      = 
| preceding1      = 
| preceding2      = 
| dissolved       = 
| superseding     = 
| jurisdiction    = [[European Union]]
| headquarters    = [[Luxembourg City]], Luxembourg
| coordinates     = {{coord|49|37|22|N|6|8|49|E|type:landmark|display=inline}}
| employees       = 
| budget          = €175,059,922 (2023)
| chief1_name     = [[Tony Murphy (auditor)|Tony Murphy]]
| chief2_position = 
| parent_agency   = 
| child1_agency   = 
| child2_agency   = 
| website         = [http://eca.europa.eu/ eca.europa.eu]
| footnotes       = 
}}
The '''European Court of Auditors''' ('''ECA'''; French: ''Cour des comptes européenne'') is the [[supreme audit institution]] of the [[European Union]] (EU).  It was established in 1975 in [[Luxembourg City|Luxembourg]] and is one of the [[Institutions of the European Union|seven EU institutions]].<ref name="UIA">{{Cite web |url=https://uia.org/s/or/en/1100027019 |url-access= |title=European Court of Auditors |author1=Staff writer |year=2024 |department=UIA Global Civil Society Database |website=uia.org |publisher=[[Union of International Associations]] |agency=Yearbook of International Organizations Online |location=Brussels, Belgium |format= |arxiv= |asin= |bibcode= |doi= |isbn= |issn= |jfm= |jstor= |lccn= |mr= |oclc= |ol= |osti= |pmc= |pmid= |rfc= |ssrn= |zbl= |id= |access-date=12 January 2025 |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-date= |via= |quote= |trans-quote= }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://eur-lex.europa.eu/summary/glossary/eu_institutions.html|title=Glossary of summaries – EUR-Lex|website=eur-lex.europa.eu|access-date=2020-03-25|archive-date=6 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200106200802/https://eur-lex.europa.eu/summary/glossary/eu_institutions.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The Court comprises one member from each [[EU member state]] (currently {{EUnum}}) supported by approximately 900 civil servants.

==History==
[[File:ECA building.jpg|thumb|ECA headquarters in [[Luxembourg City]]]]
{{Politics of the European Union}}
{{See also|History of the European Union}}
The ECA was created by the [[Treaties of the European Union#Budgetary treaties|1975 Budgetary Treaty]] and was formally established on 18 October 1977, holding its first session a week later. At that time the ECA was not a formal institution; it was an external body designed to audit the finances of the [[European Communities]]. It replaced two separate audit bodies, one which dealt with the finances of the [[European Economic Community]] and [[Euratom]], and one which dealt with the [[European Coal and Steel Community]].<ref name="ENA ECA">{{cite web|title=European Court of Auditors|publisher=[[Centre virtuel de la connaissance sur l'Europe|CVCE]]|url=http://www.cvce.eu/obj/european_court_of_auditors-en-03726b57-8e08-4c93-af15-bf8721590763.html|access-date=28 April 2013|archive-date=8 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408120121/https://www.cvce.eu/obj/european_court_of_auditors-en-03726b57-8e08-4c93-af15-bf8721590763.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The ECA did not have a defined legal status until the [[Treaty of Maastricht]] when it was made the fifth institution, the first new institution since the founding of the Community. By becoming an institution it gained some new powers, such as the ability to bring actions before the [[European Court of Justice]] (ECJ). At first its audit power related only to the [[European Community]] [[Three pillars of the European Union|pillar]] of the [[European Union]] (EU), but under the [[Treaty of Amsterdam]] it gained the full power to audit the finances of the whole of the EU.<ref name="ENA ECA"/>

==Functions==
Despite its name, the ECA has no jurisdictional functions. It is rather a professional external investigatory audit agency.<ref name="BH Sp"/> The primary role of the ECA is to externally check if the [[budget of the European Union]] has been implemented correctly and that EU funds have been spent legally and with sound management. In doing so, the ECA checks the paperwork of all persons handling any income or expenditure of the Union and carries out spot checks. The ECA is bound to report any problems in its reports for the attention of the EU's Member States and institutions, these reports include its general and specific annual reports, as well as special reports on its performance audits.<ref name="Europa Institutions">{{cite web|title=Institutions of the EU: The European Court of Auditors|publisher=[[Europa (web portal)]]|url=http://europa.eu/institutions/inst/auditors/index_en.htm|access-date=15 October 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091222001147/http://europa.eu/institutions/inst/auditors/index_en.htm|archive-date=22 December 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Power of audit of the European Court of Auditors|publisher=[[Centre virtuel de la connaissance sur l'Europe|CVCE]]|url=http://www.cvce.eu/obj/power_of_audit_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-f42b856f-6c9b-4434-8254-69e87a0efa62.html|access-date=28 April 2013|archive-date=9 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130609173834/http://www.cvce.eu/obj/power_of_audit_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-f42b856f-6c9b-4434-8254-69e87a0efa62.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The ECA's decision is the basis for the [[European Commission]] decisions; for example, when the ECA found problems in the management of EU funds in the [[regions of England]], the Commission suspended funds to those regions and is prepared to fine those who do not return to acceptable standards.<ref name="BBC Eng">{{cite web|title=EU may force region to repay cash|date=16 October 2007|work=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/file_on_4/7045159.stm|access-date=17 October 2007|archive-date=19 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071019012240/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/file_on_4/7045159.stm|url-status=live}}</ref>

In this role, the ECA has to remain independent yet remain in touch with the other institutions; for example, a key role is the presentation of the ECA's annual report to the [[European Parliament]]. It is based on this report that the Parliament makes its decision on whether or not to sign off the European Commission's handling of the budget for that year.<ref name="Europa Institutions"/> The Parliament notably refused to do this in 1984 and 1999, the latter case forced the [[Santer Commission#Budget controversy|resignation of the Santer Commission]].<ref name="background">{{cite web | title=Budgetary control: 1996 discharge raises issue of confidence in the Commission | publisher=[[Europa (web portal)]] | year=1999 | url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/election/bilan/en/pf1901en.htm | access-date=15 October 2007 | archive-date=26 September 2008 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080926185619/http://www.europarl.europa.eu/election/bilan/en/pf1901en.htm | url-status=live }}</ref> The ECA, if satisfied, also sends assurances to the Council and Parliament that the taxpayers' money is being properly used,<ref name="Europa Institutions"/> and the ECA must be consulted before the adoption of any legislation with financial implications, but its opinion is never binding.<ref>{{cite web|title=Consultative powers of the European Court of Auditors|publisher=CVCE|url=http://www.cvce.eu/obj/consultative_powers_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-5f52454a-7e43-42e3-a9ba-8b7663077de7.html|access-date=28 April 2013|archive-date=9 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140109230952/http://www.cvce.eu/obj/consultative_powers_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-5f52454a-7e43-42e3-a9ba-8b7663077de7.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Organisation==
Each EU Member State nominates a candidate to serve as an ECA Member. Members are formally appointed by the [[Council of the European Union]] after consultation with the [[European Parliament]]. They are appointed for a renewable term of six years. They are not all replaced every six years, however, as their terms do not coincide (four of the original members began with reduced terms of four years for this reason).<ref name="cvce_council_decision_77_656">{{cite web|title=Council Decision 77/656/EEC, Euratom, ECSC (18 October 1977)|publisher=CVCE|url=https://www.cvce.eu/en/obj/council_decision_77_656_eec_euratom_ecsc_18_october_1977-en-923e91c3-2b88-46ea-9708-f264f9920dc7.html|access-date=22 May 2025|archive-date=20 April 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250420165007/https://www.cvce.eu/en/obj/council_decision_77_656_eec_euratom_ecsc_18_october_1977-en-923e91c3-2b88-46ea-9708-f264f9920dc7.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Members are chosen from people who have served in national audit bodies, who are qualified for the office and whose independence is beyond doubt. While serving in the Court, members cannot engage in any other professional activities.<ref name="ENA Comp">{{cite web|title=Composition of the European Court of Auditors|publisher=CVCE|url=http://www.cvce.eu/obj/composition_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-0bf8b1ef-450f-4b68-a465-d441bd7fabe6.html|access-date=28 April 2013|archive-date=3 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003200205/http://www.cvce.eu/obj/composition_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-0bf8b1ef-450f-4b68-a465-d441bd7fabe6.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

As the body is independent, its members are free to decide their own organisation and rules of procedure, although these must be ratified by the Council of the European Union.<ref name="ENA OO">{{cite web|title=Organisation and operation of the European Court of Auditors|publisher=CVCE|url=http://www.cvce.eu/obj/organisation_and_operation_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-3a686eb2-9c66-45d4-a0fe-4ef23fe21f2f.html|access-date=28 April 2013|archive-date=3 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003200224/http://www.cvce.eu/obj/organisation_and_operation_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-3a686eb2-9c66-45d4-a0fe-4ef23fe21f2f.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Since the [[Treaty of Nice]], the ECA can set up "chambers"<ref name="Europa Glossary">{{cite web|title=Glossary: The European Court of Auditors|publisher=[[Europa (web portal)]]|url=https://european-union.europa.eu/institutions-law-budget/institutions-and-bodies/search-all-eu-institutions-and-bodies/european-court-auditors-eca_en|access-date=22 May 2022|archive-date=28 April 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250428233302/https://european-union.europa.eu/institutions-law-budget/institutions-and-bodies/search-all-eu-institutions-and-bodies/european-court-auditors-eca_en|url-status=live}}</ref> (with only a few Members each) to adopt certain types of reports or opinions. It is currently composed of five audit chambers, each of which has specific areas of responsibility. Members are responsible for leading audits and guiding reports through the internal adoption procedure. When a report has been adopted, the reporting member presents it to the institutional stakeholders such as the [[European Parliament]] and the [[Council of the European Union]], and to the media.

The ECA is supported by a staff of approximately 800 auditors, [[Translation|translators]] and administrators [[EU Concours|recruited]] as part of the [[European Civil Service]]. Auditors are divided into auditor groups which inspect and prepare draft reports for the ECA to take decisions upon. Inspections take place not only of EU institutions but of any state which receives EU funds, given that 90% of [[income]] and [[expenditure]] is managed by national authorities rather than the EU. Upon finding a fault, the ECA—possessing no legal powers of its own—informs the [[European Anti-Fraud Office]] (OLAF), which is the EU's anti-fraud agency.<ref name="Europa Institutions"/> The ECA is also assisted by the [[Secretary-General of the European Court of Auditors]], elected by the College of ECA Members, who—along with general management and assistance to the President—draws up draft minutes and keeps archives of decisions, as well as ensuring the publication of reports in the ''[[Official Journal of the European Union]]''.<ref name="ENA ORG">{{cite web|title=Organisation of the European Court of Auditors|publisher=CVCE|url=http://www.cvce.eu/obj/organisation_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-97ed4e20-799e-48e7-8650-97377bd3f494.html|access-date=28 April 2013|archive-date=3 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003200234/http://www.cvce.eu/obj/organisation_of_the_european_court_of_auditors-en-97ed4e20-799e-48e7-8650-97377bd3f494.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

===President===
The members then elect one of their members as the President of the ECA for a renewable three-year term. The election takes place by a secret ballot of those members who applied for the presidency. The duties of the President (which may be delegated) are to convene and chair the meetings of the ECA, ensuring that decisions are implemented and the departments (and other activities) are soundly managed. The President also represents the institution and appoints a representative for it in contentious proceedings.<ref name="ENA ORG"/>

The current President is Tony Murphy (from Ireland) who took office on October 1, 2022. He succeeded Klaus-Heiner Lehne (Germany), elected in 2016. The previous presidents were Sir [[Norman Price (civil servant)|Norman Price]] (elected in 1977, [[United Kingdom]]), Michael Murphy (1977, [[Ireland]]), Pierre Lelong (1981, [[France]]), Marcel Mart (1984, [[Luxembourg]]), Aldo Angioi (1990, [[Italy]]), André Middelhoek (1992, [[Netherlands]]), Bernhard Friedmann (1996, [[Germany]]), [[Jan O. Karlsson]] (1999, [[Sweden]]), Juan Manuel Fabra Vallés † (2002, [[Spain]]), [[Hubert Weber (judge)|Hubert Weber]] (2006, [[Austria]]), and Vítor Manuel da Silva Caldeira (2007, [[Portugal]]).<ref name="ENA Pres">{{cite web|title=Presidents of the European Court of Auditors|date=13 August 2011|publisher=CVCE|url=http://www.cvce.eu/obj/presidents_of_the_court_of_auditors-en-375395a7-768b-462d-8e6f-b52f8f64128c.html|access-date=28 April 2013|archive-date=3 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003200344/http://www.cvce.eu/obj/presidents_of_the_court_of_auditors-en-375395a7-768b-462d-8e6f-b52f8f64128c.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Members===
List of members of the European Court of Auditors as of 22 May 2025:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Organisation |url=https://www.eca.europa.eu/en/organisation-members |access-date=2025-05-22 |website=eca.europa.eu}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible"
![[Member state of the European Union|Member state]]
! colspan="2" |Name
!Member since
!Chamber
!Status
|-
| '''{{flag|Austria}}'''
| [[Helga Berger]]
| 
| 1 August 2020
|
| Chair of the Audit Quality Control Committee
|-
| '''{{flag|Belgium}}'''
| [[Annemie Turtelboom]]
| 
| 1 May 2018
| Chamber II
| Dean
|-
| '''{{flag|Bulgaria}}'''
| [[Iliana Ivanova]]
| 
| 1 January 2025
| Chamber I
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Croatia}}'''
| [[Ivana Maletić]]
| 
| 15 July 2019
| Chamber IV
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Cyprus}}'''
| [[Lefteris Christoforou]]
| 
| 2 November 2022
| Chamber V
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Czech Republic}}'''
| Jan Gregor
| 
| 7 May 2016
| Chamber V
| Dean and Member for the Annual Report
|-
| '''{{flag|Denmark}}'''
| [[Bettina Jakobsen]]
| 
| 1 September 2015
| Chamber III
| Dean
|-
| '''{{flag|Estonia}}'''
| [[Keit Pentus-Rosimannus]]
| 
| 1 January 2023
| Chamber I
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Finland}}'''
| [[Petri Sarvamaa]]
| 
| 1 June 2024
| Chamber IV
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|France}}'''
| [[François-Roger Cazala]]
| 
| 1 January 2020
| Chamber IV
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Germany}}'''
| [[Klaus-Heiner Lehne]]
| 
| 1 March 2014
| Chamber I
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Greece}}'''
| [[Nikolaos Milionis]]
| 
| 1 January 2014
| Chamber I
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Hungary}}'''
| [[Ildikó Pelczné Gáll]]
| 
| 1 September 2017
| Chamber V
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Ireland}}'''
| [[Tony Murphy (auditor)|'''Tony Murphy''']]
| 
| 1 May 2018
|
| President
|-
| '''{{flag|Italy}}'''
| [[Carlo Alberto Manfredi Selvaggi]]
| 
| 1 May 2024
| Chamber II
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Latvia}}'''
| [[Mihails Kozlovs]]
| 
| 7 May 2016
| Chamber IV
| Dean
|-
| '''{{flag|Lithuania}}'''
| [[Laima Andrikienė]]
| 
| 16 November 2022
| Chamber III
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Luxembourg}}'''
| [[Joëlle Elvinger]]
| 
| 1 January 2020
| Chamber I
| Dean
|-
| '''{{flag|Malta}}'''
| [[George Marius Hyzler]]
| 
| 1 October 2022
| Chamber III
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Netherlands}}'''
| [[Stef Blok]]
| 
| 1 September 2022
| Chamber II
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Poland}}'''
| [[Marek Opioła]]
| 
| 1 February 2021
| Chamber III
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Portugal}}'''
| [[João Leão]]
| 
| 1 March 2024
| Chamber I
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Romania}}'''
| [[Viorel Ștefan]]
| 
| 1 July 2019
| Chamber III
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Slovakia}}'''
| [[Katarína Kaszasová]]
| 
| 16 October 2023
| Chamber V
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Slovenia}}'''
| [[Jorg Kristijan Petrovič]]
| 
| 7 May 2022
| Chamber V
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Spain}}'''
| [[Alejandro Blanco Fernández]]
| 
| 1 March 2024
| Chamber II
| Member
|-
| '''{{flag|Sweden}}'''
| [[Hans Lindblad]]
| 
| 1 June 2024
| Chamber IV
| Member
|}

=== Secretary-general ===
The [[Secretary-General]] is the ECA's most senior member of staff. Appointed for a renewable term of six years, he is responsible for the management of the ECA's staff and for the administration of the ECA. In addition, the Secretary-General is responsible for the budget, translation, training and information technology.

==== List of secretaries-general ====
* 1989–1994: Patrick Everard
* 1994–2001: Edouard Ruppert
* 2001–2008: Michel Hervé ([[France]])
* 2008–2009: John Speed (ad interim, [[United Kingdom]])
* 2009–2020: Eduardo Ruiz Garcia ([[Spain]])
* 2020–2020: Philippe Froidure (ad interim)
* Since 2021: Zacharias Kolias ([[Greece]])

=== Staffing ===
ECA staff are mainly officials recruited via the reserve lists from general competitions organised by the European Personnel Selection Office external link (EPSO). In certain circumstances, however, the ECA may also engage temporary or contract staff. To be eligible for a post at the ECA, one must be a citizen of one of the European Union Member States.

==== Traineeships ====
The ECA organises two traineeship sessions per year in areas of interest to its work, one starting in April, one in October. Traineeships are granted for a maximum of six months and are remunerated (€1600/month) or non-remunerated.

== Work ==
The ECA publishes the results of its audit work in a variety of reports – annual reports, specific annual reports and special reports – depending on the type of audit. Other published products include opinions and review-based publications. In total, the ECA published 93 reports in 2017.
All reports, opinions and reviews are published on the ECA's website in the official EU languages.

==Criticism==
===Statement of assurance===
Since 1994 the ECA has been required to provide a "statement of assurance", essentially a certificate that an entire annual budget can be accounted for. This has proved to be a problem, as even relatively minor omissions require the ECA to refuse a statement of assurance for the entire budget, even if almost all of the budget is considered reliable.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}}

This has led to media reports of the EU accounts being "riddled with [[fraud]]", where issues are based on errors in paperwork even though the underlying spending was legal.{{Citation needed|date=January 2011}} The auditing system itself has drawn criticism from this perception. The Commission in particular has stated that the bar is too high, and that only 0.09% of the budget is subject to fraud.<ref name="BBC 2006">{{cite web|last=Mulvey|first=Stephen|title=Why the EU's audit is bad news|work=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6078982.stm|access-date=15 October 2007|date=24 October 2006|archive-date=9 November 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061109025437/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6078982.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> The Commission has elsewhere stated that it is important to distinguish between fraud and other irregularities.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ec.europa.eu/anti_fraud/reports/commission/2009/en.pdf |title=Protection of the European Union's financial interests – Fight against fraud – Annual Report 2009 (''vid.'' p. 5) |publisher=Europa |access-date=22 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100729063014/http://ec.europa.eu/anti_fraud/reports/commission/2009/en.pdf |archive-date=29 July 2010}}</ref> The controversial dismissal in 2003 of [[Marta Andreasen]] for her criticism of procedures in 2002 has, for some, called into doubt the integrity of the institutions.

It is frequently claimed that annual accounts have not been certified by the external auditor since 1994. In its annual report on the implementation of the 2009 EU Budget, the Court of Auditors found that the two biggest areas of the EU budget, agriculture and regional spending, have not been signed off on and remain "materially affected by error".<ref name="EU spending not signed off for 16th year running">{{cite web |title=OpenEurope |publisher=OpenEurope |url=http://www.openeurope.org.uk/media-centre/pressrelease.aspx?pressreleaseid=150 |access-date=14 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111027135234/http://openeurope.org.uk/media-centre/pressrelease.aspx?pressreleaseid=150 |archive-date=27 October 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Nonetheless, the European Commission claims that every budget since 2007 has been signed off.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ec.europa.eu/info/about-european-commission/eu-budget/how-it-works/fact-check_en |title=Fact check on the EU budget &#124; European Commission |access-date=29 March 2019 |archive-date=30 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330001746/https://ec.europa.eu/info/about-european-commission/eu-budget/how-it-works/fact-check_en |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Terry Wynn]], an [[Member of the European Parliament|MEP]] who served on the Parliament's [[Committee on Budgetary Control]] and reached the position of chairman, has also backed these calls, stating that it is impossible for the Commission to achieve these standards. In a report entitled ''EU Budget – Public Perception & Fact – how much does it cost, where does the money go and why is it criticised so much?'', Wynn cites consensus that practice in the EU differs from that in the US.  In the US, the focus is on the financial information, not on the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions, 'So, other than in Europe, the political reaction in the US to the failure to obtain a clean audit opinion is only "a big yawn"'.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.terrywynn.com/Budget/EU%20Budget%20-%20Perception%20&%20Fact.htm |title=EU Budget – Public Perception & Fact (''vid.'' II.1.2; Conclusion) |publisher=Terry Wynn |access-date=22 December 2010 |archive-date=16 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716212146/http://www.terrywynn.com/Budget/EU%20Budget%20-%20Perception%20%26%20Fact.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

By comparison, the [[Comptroller and Auditor General (United Kingdom)|Comptroller and Auditor General]] for the United Kingdom stated that there were 500 separate accounts for the UK, and "in the last year, I qualified 13 of the 500.  If I had to operate the EU system, then, because I qualify 13 accounts, I might have to qualify the whole [[Her Majesty's Government|British central government]] expenditure".  Despite the problems, the [[Barroso Commission]] stated that it aimed to bring the budget within the Court's limits by the end of its mandate in 2009.<ref name="BBC 2006"/>

The ECA made clear in its year report for 2010 that "Responsibility for the legality and regularity of spending on Cohesion Policies starts in the Member States, but the Commission bears the ultimate responsibility for the correct implementation of the budget". In previous reports, the ECA has noted that "Regardless of the method of implementation applied, the Commission bears the ultimate responsibility for the legality and regularity of the transactions underlying the accounts of the European Communities (Article 274 of the Treaty)".<ref name="EU spending not signed off for 16th year running"/>

===Size===
The size of the ECA has also come under criticism. Owing to the one-member-per-state system, its College of Members grew from nine to twenty-eight as of 2013 (twenty-seven after completing of the [[United Kingdom]] withdrawal from the [[European Union]]/[[Brexit]] on 31 January 2020<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/eu-relations-with-the-united-kingdom/the-eu-uk-withdrawal-agreement/timeline-eu-uk-withdrawal-agreement/ | title=Timeline - the EU-UK withdrawal agreement }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.eca.europa.eu/en/former-members | title=Former Members }}</ref>). Attempting to get consensus in the body has thus become more difficult; this led to the number of its special reports per year shrinking from fifteen to six between 2003 and 2005, despite its staff growing by 200 over the same period. Some proposals have been for its size to be reduced to five members or just one, possibly with an advisory board with members from each member state. However, neither the [[Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe|European Constitution]] nor the [[Treaty of Lisbon]] proposed any changes to its composition, despite calls by former ECA members and MEPs to embrace change.<ref name="BH Sp">{{cite web|last=Bösch|first=Herbert|author-link=Herbert Bösch|title=Speech by Herbert Bösch, Chairman of the European Parliament's Committee on Budgetary Control|publisher=[[Europa (web portal)]]|date=18 October 2007|url=http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=ECA/07/21&format=PDF&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en|access-date=17 October 2007|archive-date=19 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819002625/https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ECA_07_21|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="EV 07">{{cite web|last=Karlsson|first=Jan|author2=Tobisson, Lars|title='Much talk, little action' at European Court of Auditors|date=6 June 2007|publisher=[[European Voice]]|url=https://www.politico.eu/article/much-talk-little-action-at-european-court-of-auditors/|access-date=15 April 2020|archive-date=26 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126064557/https://www.politico.eu/article/much-talk-little-action-at-european-court-of-auditors/|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Legislative references ==
* [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=uriserv%3AOJ.L_.2021.030.01.0010.01.ENG&toc=OJ%3AL%3A2021%3A030%3ATOC Code of Conduct for the Members and former Members of the Court of Auditors]

==See also==
{{Columns-list|colwidth=30em|
* [[Secretary-General of the European Court of Auditors]]
* [[Cour des Comptes]] (France)
* [[Federal Court of Auditors of Germany]]
* [[Tribunal de Cuentas]] (Spain)
* [[Chamber of Accounts (Greece)]]
* [[Swedish National Audit Office]]
* [[Government Accountability Office]] (US)
* [[Australian National Audit Office]]
* [[National Audit Office (China)]]
* [[Bundesrechnungshof]]
* [[National Audit Office (United Kingdom)]]
* [[Supreme Chamber of Control of the Republic of Poland]]
* [[Netherlands Court of Audit]]
* [[Court of Audit of Belgium]]
* [[Audit Chamber of Armenia]]
* [[Rigsrevisionen]]
}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [http://archives.eui.eu/en/fonds/ Archives] of the European Court of Auditors at the [http://www.eui.eu/Research/HistoricalArchivesOfEU/AbouttheHistoricalArchives/Index.aspx Historical Archives of the EU] in Florence
* [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/browse/institutions/auditors.html Access to documents of the Court of Auditors] on [[EUR-Lex]]
* [http://www.cvce.eu/obj/european_court_of_auditors-en-03726b57-8e08-4c93-af15-bf8721590763.html European Court of Auditors] page on CVCE.eu

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