Bulgaria may lose the financing under the ISPA program if the recovery of the system and the potential for new projects turn out to be zero, EU Regional Policy Commissioner Danuta Huebner said on Tuesday, BTA reported.

Huebner took part in a seminar on the lessons of absorbing EU funds following the example of Ireland and Spain. The seminar was organized by the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe in the European Parliament.

The financing under ISPA may also be lost if urgent action is not taken now. It is important to act quickly, to implement quickly the projects under ISPA, because these projects are a good sign of the capacity to absorb much larger funding under the structural funds, Huebner told journalists after the seminar.

One of the difficulties for Bulgaria and Romania when it comes to the absorption of European funds is related to the creation of quality administration, especially at the local level, which can prepare and implement good projects. In this sphere, serious support is needed from the governments, considerable funding and technical assistance, and the European Commission intends to provide all kinds of support.

Another threat to the absorption of EU funds not only in Bulgaria and Romania but also in the rest of the EU is the insufficient observance of rules and regulations, she said.

In connection with the problem of suspended funding for Bulgaria related to the National Road Infrastructure Fund, the European Commission is still expecting a report from the independent auditor KPMG and its recommendations, Huebner said.

Then, the European Commission will add its own recommendations and a good action plan will hopefully be drawn up for the Bulgarian Government. The implementation of this action plan will then be audited, and only then these projects may be continued for which we stopped payments, the Commissioner said.

The process has been delayed, but the Commission appreciates what the Bulgarian Government has done to have an independent auditor. The KPMG report is expected at the European Commission shortly, she said.