The European Commission has been accused of squandering taxpayers’ money on luxuries, including private jets for its Commissioners, at the same time as it is asking its member states, grappling with austerity, for a 4.8 per cent increase in next year’s budget.
According to an investigation by the London-based Bureau of Investigative Journalists, between 2006 and 2010 the EU executive spent €7.5 million on private jets for the use of its Commissioners.
President José Manuel Barroso and eight assistants were accused of racking up , where the delegation stayed in suites costing on average €780 per night. According to EU rules, the maximum to be paid for Commissioners’ hotels is just €250 a night.
The research, which has made the headlines in eurosceptic newspapers, particularly in the UK, also revealed that guest speakers werebeing presented with Tiffany jewellery, cuff links and fountain pens.
One bill totalled €75,000 for an event subsidised by the EU’s Research Executive Agency in Amsterdam, boasting a “night filled with wonder like no other…state-of-the-art technology, challenging art, combined with trendy cocktails, surprising performances and top DJs”.
According to the Bureau, in 2009 the Commission also held away-days for officials and their families at resorts in Papua New Guinea and Ghana. On one occasion a delegation of 44 staff members were flown to the five-star Palm Garden Resort in Vietnam for an event to “facilitate internal co-operation”.
Member states, the Commission and the European Parliament are currently in a tug-of-war over next year’s budget while the EU executive is currently finalising its proposals for the next seven-year financial period from 2014 to 2020.
The contributing member states, including Germany, France and the UK, are already pressing for a budget freeze on the EU’s spending in order to calm internal political problems due to the severe austerity measures they had to implement to control their bulging deficits.
On the other hand, net beneficiaries, including Malta, are taking a less aggressive approach fearing less allocation of EU funds if the overall contributions are capped or cut.
The Commission has so far declined to comment officially on the latest revelations of the Bureau.
The editor of the Bureau, Iain Overton, said that “the findings raise questions not just about taxpayers’ money being wasted, but also about how accountable the EU Commission is for its spending”.
EU commissioners are among the highest paid politicians in Europe with a basic salary of over €20,000 net a month apart from many handsome perks.