Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the inability of the EU chief auditor to verify the expenditure of €1 billion of aid funding intended for refugees in Turkey; and whether they intend to make representations to the government of Turkey about such funds.

DFID welcomes the audit of the Facility for Refugees in Turkey (FRIT) by the European Court of Auditors (ECA), published in November. The ECA’s report highlights the success of the FRIT in mobilising a swift response to the crisis and delivering projects that have provided helpful support to Syrian refugees in Turkey. DFID supports the ECA’s recommendations for further improvements to the FRIT, including improving access to primary data for two programmes (representing €382 million of FRIT expenditure). The ECA notes that the anonymised data provided by the Government of Turkey for these projects has made the European Commission’s monitoring and evaluation less effective.

The UK remains an active member of the FRIT Steering Committee and maintains a regular dialogue – at all levels – with the Government of Turkey on the FRIT. We have used our position to influence the FRIT to be more sustainable and maintain focus on supporting the most vulnerable, as well as challenging the European Commission to improve its monitoring and evaluation framework. We will continue to raise issues of concern with the relevant Turkish authorities and with the Commission.