Before I even began working at the Ministry of Finance and Regional Policy, the situation was already so accelerated that halting it would have been almost impossible, he told money.pl. Deputy Minister Jacek Karnowski addressed the unfolding controversy over KPO subsidies.
Responsibility for KPO Grants
Deputy Minister Jacek Karnowski emphasized in an interview with money.pl that as a government member he is responsible for the development of the Polish economy, including Polish companies receiving support from EU funds and the KPO. He noted that competitions for the HoReCa sector fall under the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) and its appointed operators, stating that he does not supervise PARP.
When a journalist asked for his comments on former MFiPR head Grzegorz Puda’s statement that the current government decides the criteria for KPO funds in HoReCa, Karnowski explained that the ruling party set these as grant-based, additional support for businesses impacted by COVID‑19.
Who Set the Criteria? Karnowski: It Was a Sprint
“The truth is, we handed over authority when the program was not yet launched. It had no defined conditions or criteria. The competition was announced in April 2024. This government had all the tools to create a program that would not be subject to criticism and could distribute funds fairly,” Puda told niezalezna.pl.
According to Karnowski, PiS decided that these would be grants with an “additional leg” for businesses hit by the pandemic. He added that a state official once wanted to alter these rules, but officials from the PiS era did not agree. “Before I even began working at the MFiPR, it was already so fast paced that stopping it would have been almost impossible,” he reiterated.
KPO Scandal: Pełczyńska-Nałęcz Blames PARP; The Response
On Tuesday afternoon, a cabinet meeting commenced where ministers heard explanations from MFiPR head Katarzyna Pełczyńska‑Nałęcz. Earlier, the minister repeatedly asserted that the PARP is responsible for the distribution of KPO funds. At the end of July, the presidency of the Agency was replaced by Katarzyna Duber‑Stachurska, who on LinkedIn blamed the Ministry of Finance for the KPO scandal, stressing that PARP is a contractual broker that cannot set criteria for grant allocation. All procedures, regulations, and contracts are approved by the Ministry, not by PARP.
Dubee‑Stachurska added that the ministry approved even the description of invoices for expenditures and supervised the program’s daily implementation. She claimed that the ministry was aware of the “boats” issues, answered operators’ questions, and personally intervened to relax original rules so funds would flow more smoothly and quickly.
