On January 20th, 2009 a mission will come to Bulgaria in order to examine whether the necessary measures have been taken in the field of cohesion policy and in laying out of the EU structural funds, EU Commissioner Danuta Hübner announced. She replied to questions by the Deputy Chairman of the EP Committee on Regional Development Feliz Huysmenova (ALDE - MRF) before the start of the mini-plenary session that has taken place in Brussels this week.

"Would you agree that the motives of the European Commission for denying accreditation to the PHARE paying agencies in Bulgaria were not specific enough? Do you think that the specified motives create the necessary credibility for taking such a measure especially in the context of the increasing aid allocated by the Commission to the member states for coping with the global crisis?" the Bulgarian MEP asked.

In her reply Commissioner Hübner reminded the MEP that serious warnings have been given to Sofia in July and that those warnings are on the grounds for the decision. "I could not doubt the work of my colleagues from Directorate General Enlargement", she explained.

The Commissioner added that: "We are in the process of receiving additional information which is to show whether measures have actually been taken in regard with the criticism in the field of regional policy. In regard with this clarification process a new check up will start in Bulgaria on January, 20th. Its mission is to determine what is being done in the field of cohesion policy, in order not to impose such harsh measures in the allocation of structural funds".