Former Belgian PM Verhofstadt investigated in EU Parliament intern probe

BRUSSELS — Former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt is under investigation by Belgian federal prosecutors over the supervision of European Parliament interns during his time as leader of the liberal group.

The investigation, which was first reported by Belgian magazine Knack, apparently began this year. It focuses on the period from 2009  to 2019 when Verhofstadt chaired the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe group in the Parliament. ALDE was succeeded by Renew Europe after the 2019 European election.

An EU official familiar with the matter, who was granted anonymity to speak freely, confirmed to POLITICO that Verhofstadt is under investigation for the way in which he supervised parliamentary interns. They said the probe was initiated by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), but is now being conducted by Belgian authorities on behalf of the EU bodies.

“OLAF has merely requested information from our client regarding the supervision of a number of interns … in which he, as group chair, was not personally involved,” lawyers Christine Mussche and Quinten De Keersmaecker, who are representing Verhofstadt in the case, told Knack.

“Verhofstadt himself has not yet been interviewed, and there are currently no specific allegations against him. He is cooperating fully with OLAF and has provided the requested explanations with complete transparency,” the lawyers added.

Reached by POLITICO, Verhofstadt declined to comment further.

In a written reply Sunday, EPPO spokesperson Tine Hollevoet said: “As a general rule, the EPPO does not comment on ongoing investigations, nor do we publicly confirm which cases we are working on, in order not to endanger the possible ongoing procedures and their outcome.”

The Belgian Federal Prosecutor’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Verhofstadt, who was Belgium’s prime minister from 1999 to 2008 and served as an MEP from 2009 to 2024, is a prominent pro-EU figure who represented the European Parliament in the Brexit negotiations following the U.K.’s 2016 referendum on EU membership.

He left the Parliament in 2024 and is currently president of the board of the European Movement International, a pro-Europe lobby.