Cresson to be charged with fraud

Wednesday 26 March 2003 01:00 GMT

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The former French prime minister Edith Cresson will face corruption charges in Belgium over claims that she and her staff misused public money while she served as a European commissioner in the 1990s.

The decision by Belgian prosecutors makes Ms Cresson the first former commissioner to face legal charges, and revolves around claims that she and her colleagues drew up false contracts. If she is convicted of fraud, she faces up to five years in prison.

Ms Cresson is also facing a separate EU investigation over claims of cronyism and mismanagement that led all 20 commissioners to resign in 1999.

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