EU chiefs have been accused of “disastrous” waste and “financial mismanagement” after the revelation that the bloc could face a bill of more than £370million for a soon-to-be-vacated London building previously leased by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
The 280,000-square foot block, 30 Churchill Place in Canary Wharf, previously occupied by the EMA, an agency of the EU, was sublet to US office rental business WeWork after Brexit.
However, with the company filing for bankruptcy in November and the EMA having signed a 25-year lease in 2011, Brussels is at serious risk of being saddled with a white elephant which could end up costing £373million over that period.
If the building remains empty for the rest of the year, the EU will face a bill of £27million bill, with the EMA – which is now based in Amsterdam – already having requested more money to cover the budget shortfall.
Dutch MEP Michiel Hoogeveen was unimpressed by the financial burden European taxpayers were now facing.
He told Express.co.uk: “While – as a Dutchman – I am glad that the EMA has moved to Amsterdam, this contract indeed seems a waste of cash.
“In any private enterprise, these types of deals would be disastrous for the persons responsible for negotiating such contracts.
“Not in the EU, where persons are rarely held accountable for making such mistakes.”
Pieter Cleppe, the editor of BrusselsReport.uk, told Express.co.uk: ”This is typical for how the EU treats precious taxpayer resources.
“Despite years of criticism towards the way the EU has been spending its budget by the EU’s own auditing institution, the European Court of Auditors, nothing much has changed.
“The European Parliament is supposed to be a check on the EU machine, but instead it tends to urge for ever more EU spending, despite the financial mismanagement.
“This would be like a CEO being urged by shareholders of a company to increase bloated spending, instead of ending it.”
MEPs must soon decide whether to cover the £4.55 million it will owe for the first three months of 2024.
A leaked confidential briefing note said: “The agency’s current budget for 2024 does not have funding for additional costs outside its annual programme.
“As negotiations with WeWork UK continue, it appears increasingly likely that the Union budget will need to contribute towards the rent of the 30 Churchill Place premises, which has until now been fully covered by WeWork UK.”
Commenting earlier this week, a WeWork spokeswoman said: “We are up to date on our lease obligations at 30 Churchill Place, which remains open and operational.
“As part of our previously announced process, we continue to work constructively and collaboratively with our landlord partner at this flagship location to craft a solution that mutually benefits both parties for the long term.”
An EMA spokesman said: “WeWork filed for ‘Chapter 11’ bankruptcy protection in New Jersey (United States) on 6 November 2023, in the context of an ongoing reorganisation of its business activities.
“Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code is a procedure which allows a debtor to remain in possession, continuing to operate its business, while a restructuring plan is agreed with its creditors.
“The bankruptcy protection filing concerns WeWork’s branches in the US and Canada only.”
WeWork continued to carry on operations from its London premises and was not in breach of its financial obligations, the spokesperson likewise emphasised.
