EU proposing Lm36,500 salary for MEPs

EU ministers will next week discuss a final proposal by the Luxembourg EU presidency to grant a common salary of about €84,000 (Lm36,500) a year to all 732 members.

This proposal, if approved, will also bring to an end the current discrepancies whereby Italian MEPs, for example, earn in a month what a Maltese MEP earns in a year.

This new package will be discussed by the 25 ministers for Europe next week with the aim of finalising a deal by the end of the Luxembourg presidency in June.

If the proposal is approved, it will effectively mean a dramatic boost in the remuneration given to the five Maltese MEPs currently serving in Brussels. The new proposed salary amounts also to more than twice the salary of the President and the Prime Minister.

At present, Maltese MEPs are entitled to the same salary as that of their counterparts in Malta, which amounts to Lm6,761 (€15,550) a year. Under the new proposal, the Maltese MEPs' salary will swell up to Lm36,521 (€84,000) a year which amounts to an increase of 540 per cent.

Luxembourg's Minister for Europe said the European Parliament is very interested in concluding this agreement. He said that after so much work on the new proposals during the last months, he hopes member states will ratify the plan ending an expenses regime that has tarnished the reputation of the Parliament for years.

At present, apart from their salary, all MEPs receive a Brussels/Strasbourg allowance of about Lm112 per day towards accommodation and subsistence costs and a reimbursement for their weekly travel and a distance allowance.

This system of allowances has been controversial, as under current rules, MEPs can claim the most expensive fare for air travel to and from the Parliament bases in Brussels and Strasbourg, even if they travel economy class or use a budget airline.

The European Parliament also pays allowances totalling Lm70,000 a year per MEP, towards the cost of employing staff in Brussels and at their constituency office. They are also given an office costs allowance of Lm19,000 per year.

Under current rules, MEPs are paid the same as MPs in their national Parliament. This has led to sizeable differences in pay with MEPs from Italy paid €11,000 (Lm 4,782) per month while those from Spain get €2,600 (Lm1,130) a month. These differences have increased with the enlargement of the EU with MEPs from Lithuania being the worst off, receiving just €800 (Lm347) per month.