(Brussels) The first EU Chief Prosecutor was appointed today: the European Parliament and the Council have chosen Romanian magistrate Laura Codruta Kovesi for the job. She will be tasked to investigate, prosecute and bring to justice crimes against the EU budget, such as fraud, corruption or cross-border VAT fraud above 10 million euros. Currently, only national authorities can investigate fraud against the EU budget, but their powers stop at national borders. Existing EU-bodies such as Eurojust, Europol and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) lack the necessary powers to carry out cross-border criminal investigations and prosecutions. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Commission explains in a statement, “will combine European and national law enforcement efforts in a unified, seamless and efficient approach”. “The European Commission works hard to make sure that every euro from the EU budget is spent in line with the rules and brings an EU added value”, Commissioner for Budget, Günther Oettinger, stated. This decision provides “an answer to the demands of European citizens and equips European prosecutors with new bold tools to investigate and prosecute these crimes at EU level”, added Commissioner for Justice, Věra Jourová, who also confirmed that the Office would be operational by the end of 2020.