The Commission is aware that the College of Europe in Bruges has been organising for years tailor-made training courses on ‘The European Union and its institutions’ as part of its collaboration with Embassies in Brussels. The Commission has no direct evidence as to the allegations or questions put forward by some media.

As far as the possibility of the College of Europe joining the Transparency Register is concerned, the Interinstitutional Agreement on the Transparency Register(1) allows for any entity carrying out activities ‘with the objective of directly or indirectly influencing the formulation or implementation of policy and the decision-making processes of the EU institutions,’ to join the Register. Section IV of the Transparency Register contains a sub-section specifically dedicated to academic institutions. It is however for the College of Europe to assess whether it carries out eligible activities and, if so, to decide whether it wishes to be part of this voluntary scheme.

The College of Europe receives EU funding under Erasmus+ in the framework of the operating grants to designated institutions. These institutions are designated by the EU legislator as institutions pursuing an aim of European interest. The operating grant is allocated on the basis of an annual work programme assessed by the services and is monitored during the implementation. It contributes to the administrative and infrastructure costs of the College of Europe and is not linked to specific activities or projects organised by it. The Jean Monnet contribution to the functioning (operating grant) accounts for 30% of the College of Europe annual budget.

The Commission is not in a position to comment on the revenue streams of the College of Europe.

(1) Agreement between the European Parliament and the European Commission on the Transparency Register for organisations and self-employed individuals engaged in EU policy-making and policy implementation. OJ 2014 L 277, p. 11.