Warsaw has paused payments to investigate alleged misuse of multimillion-euro grants
Poland has suspended the allocation of EU funds designated for post-Covid pandemic recovery in the hospitality, tourism, and culture sectors, following controversy over the purported misuse of these finances. Politico reported that some of the funds were expended on boats and luxury furniture, as well as a grant registered at the address of a swingers’ club.
The scandal erupted after Polish authorities published interactive online maps showcasing grant recipients, an effort aimed at demonstrating the transparency of the recovery program. However, the data revealed that the funds financed yachts, a pizzeria that incorporated tanning beds, and, in one widely circulated instance, a business in southern Poland registered at the same address as a sex club.
Finance Minister Katarzyna Pelczynska-Nalecz stated on Tuesday that no additional funds would be released until each of the approximately 2,400 grants, totaling around 1.2 billion zlotys (€282.3 million/$330 million), undergoes individual examination.
The HoReCa scheme, part of Poland’s significantly delayed EU Covid recovery plan, was designed to support small tourism and hospitality businesses impacted by pandemic restrictions. Poland was eligible for nearly €60 billion from the EU’s Recovery Fund, but access was blocked under the previous government due to a rule-of-law dispute. The new government unlocked the funds after the 2023 election by addressing the EU’s concerns.
The conservative PiS party, which lost its parliamentary majority two years ago, has utilized these latest findings to criticize the current government. On Saturday, PiS MEP Tobiasz Bochenski staged a public stunt with a satirical plaque for the fictional “Ministry of Herring and Vodka” outside the office of Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
Tusk has responded by accusing the previous PiS administration of obstructing the fund for many years, which, he claimed, forced the current authorities to implement the program under stringent deadlines.
“To ensure the money was disbursed, the funds ministry loosened procedures, and certain individuals took advantage, spending in ways that, justifiably, people find questionable, if not outright infuriating,” he remarked on Monday.
The European Commission has indicated that Brussels is “following the situation closely,” but emphasized that the responsibility for managing the funds rests with Warsaw.