The European Commission is expected to carry out on-site checks in Malta to make sure that cases of conflict of interest in relation to EU funds are avoided. In a statement, the European Parliament's press office said that Malta is among five countries where on-site inspections will be carried out to ensure there is no conflict of interest related to regional funds from the EU. Malta is also named, alongside Cyprus, as a country where "significant shortcomings" have been flagged by the Commission. "The European Parliament: emphasises that Malta and Cyprus show significant concentration of funds in the hands of few recipients; is concerned that Commission audits have identified significant shortcomings in the management and control systems of both countries; underlines that weak management and control systems do not provide adequate protection of EU funds against conflicts of interests and abuse by oligarchic structures," a text adopted this week reads. The text was adopted by 409 votes to 61 and 42 abstentions. In it, the European Parliament also points to the “unprecedented magnitude” of oligarchic groups which use government tools or criminal practices to benefit from the...