Members called to book over staff

Date: 21/06/01

By Andrew Church

THE European Parliament is calling its members to account for the annual allowance of €132,000 they receive to employ assistants.

In a move designed to bring greater transparency to the Parliament's rising budget, Vice-President Gerard Onesta has asked MEPs to provide full contractual details of all staff on their payroll.

The new measures also aim to give assistants basic employment rights. MEPs now have until the end of this month to provide proof of employment contracts, social security details and insurance covering accidents at work.

The reforms were initiated by the European Parliament's regulatory body, the Bureau, in April last year after the European Court of Auditors issued a damning report on MEPs' secretarial allowances.

Until now, members have been able to claim the allowance simply by submitting a request for payment. This left the system open to abuse, with alleged cases of MEPs putting down the names of family members and simply pocketing the cash.

The European Parliamentary Assistants Association welcomes the social security measures but believes the reforms do not go far enough. "This is just a first little step," said Armelle Weill, a member of the association's board. "But what we really need is a proper statute. "Although some of us are well treated and well paid, others are not. I have heard of assistants in Brussels earning as little as €750 a month and being asked to do baby-sitting as part of their job."

The association insists that the new rules will be difficult to enforce and argues MEPs will still be able to avoid registering as employers in their own country.

Other assistants also fear the demand for full disclosure could work against them. Most at present pay tax in their native country, but are concerned that in future they will have to pay into the Belgian system which has some of the highest rates in Europe.

The European Parliament is calling its members to account for the annual allowance of €132,000 they receive to employ assistants. In a move designed to bring greater transparency to the Parliament's rising budget, Vice-President Gerard Onesta has asked MEPs to provide full contractual details of all staff on their payroll.