Simon Busuttil MEP will be the EPP-ED's representative in the working group of the European Parliament's budgetary control body which has been tasked with gathering information about the allegations regarding the parliament's buildings in Strasbourg.

“It is an honour to have the largest group in the European Parliament show its faith in me by entrusting me with the responsibility of being their representative on a fact-finding duty which has important repercussions on the EU's institutions,” Dr Busuttil said.

“What is important at this moment is not to reach premature conclusions but to investigate the allegations through this working group in a thorough and transparent way,” he said.

The working group will report back regularly on its findings to the EP's budgetary control committee. It is expected that its work will begin immediately and should be concluded by July so as to give enough time for a decision to be taken on whether or not to present a new discharge proposal to the plenary in October.

“We hope that the different actors involved in the issue will duly cooperate and provide us with the hard facts. It is paramount that we come to conclusions which are founded on what really happened. We owe this to the reputation of the EU's institutions and to our citizens,” Dr Busuttil said.

The working group will be composed of 10 members, one each from the different political groups, a chairman and a rapporteur who will be responsible for drafting up the final conclusions.