17,000 euro-a-month salary deal for data privacy tsar excessive, say MEPs

Date: 31/01/02

By Peter Chapman

MEPs are set to attack the proposed salary for a new European privacy 'tsar' tasked with safeguarding the personal data of EU workers and contractors.

Under European Commission proposals, the new data privacy supervisor will be paid the same as a judge at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) - whose salary starts at nearly €17,000 a month and includes such perks as a chauffeur-driven car.

In addition, his or her deputy would also be given a handsome pay and benefits package akin to a registrar at the European Court, who start on just over €15,000 per month.

But MEPs on the legal affairs committee say this is totally out of proportion with the watchdogs' responsibilities - such as ensuring officials do not pass on private data without permission.

The warning follows the public outcry over the remuneration former French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing was reportedly demanding to chair the Convention on the future of Europe.

MEP Malcolm Harbour, whose report on the data privacy chief was backed by fellow members of the committee, said: 'The supervisor's powers, duties and responsibilities are certainly not on a par with those of a judge of the ECJ.

'And to compare the responsibilities of the assistant supervisor with those of the registrar of the court - a large institution employing over 1,000 staff - is entirely inappropriate,' he added, pointing out that many national data commissioners, who must police both the private and public sector, would be paid less.

Harbour forecast that MEPs would raise a red flag on the pay and conditions issue at next week's Parliament session in Strasbourg.

The Commission's move to set up the new data privacy system is seen as a complement to existing rules governing the rest of the Union - which have ramifications beyond the Union's territory.

The EU's framework data privacy law imposes some of the toughest controls on data usage in the world. Under the law, which is up for review later this year, member states can ban exports of data to third countries that do not have similar controls in place.

MEPs are set to attack the proposed salary for a new European data privacy supervisor tasked with safeguarding the personal data of EU workers and contractors.