Funds from the National Investment Fund (KPO) to be returned. "We will settle questionable investments."

• Investments from EU funds are conducted with open competitions, regulations, opinions and control, says Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz.
• The same rules apply in KPO, and an additional new feature has been introduced – a public website with maps of investments and beneficiaries, he explains.
• Where there are doubts about investments made under the KPO, they will be settled, and in the case of violations, a demand for the return of funds will be issued, he adds.

Minister of Funds and Regional Policy Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz emphasized that for 21 years, investments from EU funds have been carried out according to the highest standards - with open competitions, regulations, expert opinions and control by supervisory institutions.

She noted that the same rules apply to the National Reconstruction Plan, and an additional new feature has been introduced – a public website with maps of investments and beneficiaries, ensuring full data transparency.

The Minister pointed out that transparency enables social control , which is used by citizens who raise objections to selected projects.

She added, however, that both expert errors and attempted abuses can occur in large programs, but there are procedures in place to rigorously detect and correct them.

Where there are doubts as to the support for investments with funds from the National Investment Programme , they will be settled, and in the case of violations , beneficiaries will be requested to return the funds.

– announced the Minister of Funds and Regional Policy, Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz.

Referring to the changes in the criteria for the HoReCa program, the minister explained that the turnover decline threshold was lowered from 30% to 20% in the second stage of the recruitment process in order to achieve the required number of projects indicator specified in the KPO.

First, we opened the competition to those most affected , and then—when the quota wasn't reached— to those less affected. Normal procedure.

- she noted.

Pełczyńska-Nałęcz rejected the allegations of alleged coordinated trade in companies under the HoReCa program and emphasized that the ownership history of enterprises is not a criterion for assessing applications, and any possible ownership manipulation before the competition falls within the scope of the services' activities, not the ministry or the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP).

In her opinion, the controversy surrounding the program undermines confidence in EU-funded investments, paralyzes officials, and traumatizes beneficiaries. The minister called for a substantive discussion on how to support Polish entrepreneurs and utilize EU funds.

On Thursday evening, users of the X platform began posting examples of companies from the HoReCa sector that received subsidies from the KPO, including for yachts, saunas, coffee machines, solariums, furniture replacement , and the purchase of a virtual shooting range.

The Ministry of Funds announced audits into the matter, and the prosecutor's office has launched an investigation. Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that he will not accept any waste of KPO funds and expects swift decisions, as well as the revocation of funds in the event of abuse. He declared that consequences will be imposed regardless of position or party affiliation.

During a press conference on Friday, Jan Szyszko, deputy head of the Ministry of Funds, said that information about the irregularities reached the Ministry of Funds and Development's management "several weeks ago." The MFiPR representative added that, as a result , the previous president of the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development, Katarzyna Duber-Stachurska, was dismissed from her position at the end of July.

The Ministry of Funds announced that it will review the KPO funds allocated to businesses in the restaurant and hotel industry. It assured that the preliminary results of the audit, conducted by the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP), will likely be available by the end of September, and certainly in the third quarter of this year.

The Ministry of Finance and Development added that Poland will submit an indicator based on verified, correct projects to the European Commission in December for settlement.

According to the PARP data provided, as part of the support for SMEs from the HoReCa sector, 3,005 contracts worth PLN 1.2 billion were concluded in KPO , and PLN 110 million was paid out.

The European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) indicated that it is responsible for investigating possible fraud involving EU funds. The EPPO added that it has a strong interest in this case. The EPPO remains in close contact with national authorities.

The purpose of the HoReCa funding under the KPO is to support micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises in the hotel, catering, tourism, and culture sectors. These sectors have been hit hardest by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The HoReCa recruitment rules were established in 2023. Applications for funding could be submitted between May-June and July-October 2024. In the second round of applications, simplifications were introduced for applicants for additional funds, including lowering the minimum year-on-year turnover decline in 2020-2021 to 20%. (In the first recruitment, it was 30%).