In a recent case, Nikolaj Villumsen, a member of the European Parliament for the party Enhedslisten (the Unity List), has come under criticism from several experts. They believe that Villumsen has misused EU funds to finance campaign videos that have the character of election campaigning rather than neutral information about the EU’s work. The videos, which were published on social media in December 2023, are funded by so-called 400 funds, allocated from the left-wing group in the European Parliament, of which Enhedslisten is a part. These funds are intended to inform EU citizens about the parliament’s work but cannot be used for election campaign activities.
Bent Greve, a professor at Roskilde University, points out that the videos appear more as political messages than informative material. “They have more of a character of an election campaign message than informational material,” says Greve, adding that the timing close to the election campaign makes the use of the funds problematic. Another expert, Roger Buch from the Danish School of Media and Journalism, is also critical. He emphasizes that the videos do not include specific mentions of the EU’s work and therefore do not meet the purpose of the 400 funds. “The videos clearly appear as campaign videos,” says Buch.
However, Nikolaj Villumsen defends the use of the funds and claims that the videos were approved by relevant authorities in the European Parliament. “The videos were developed, produced, and distributed on social media in 2023 and were approved by people in the European Parliament who are used to handling such questions,” says Villumsen in a written comment. Despite the criticism, Villumsen denies that the videos were targeted at the Social Democrats or used as part of an election campaign. He emphasizes that the videos do not mention specific parties and do not encourage voting for specific politicians.
The case has raised questions about the limits of what EU funds can and should be used for, as well as how political messages are communicated in the run-up to elections. It remains to be seen how this case will affect the rules for the use of EU funds in the future.