EU lawmakers reject border agency budget over misconduct

By LORNE COOK
Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union lawmakers have refused to endorse the way the EU’s border and coast guard agency used its 2020 budget. The parliamentarians are concerned about serious misconduct by staff and human rights concerns involving Frontex’s work. Frontex supervises the 27-nation EU’s outside borders. The agency is under pressure over a series of allegations that it was involved in the illegal pushbacks of migrants, notably in the Aegean Sea between Greece and Turkey. Its executive director resigned earlier this year after an EU anti-fraud office probe. The decision not to sign off on Frontex’s 2020 expenditure has no direct legal consequences, but it does oblige the EU to take action to address the parliament’s concerns.