Brussels, 27/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - The Bureau of the European Parliament (EP) agreed on Wednesday evening 22 June to EP President Jerzy Buzek's proposal to make public the report drafted in 2008 by the EP's internal auditor on the operation of the parliamentary assistance allowance in 2004-06. The entire system for employing MEPs' assistants has since been replaced and steps have been taken where necessary to recover sums unduly paid. The Parliament will not appeal against the decision by the EU General Court on 7 June 2011 that the report should be made available to the citizen who had requested it.
New system since 2009. The report pinpointed a number of weaknesses in the system that existed at the time. The Parliament reacted by reviewing the system, which was, in fact, scrapped entirely and replaced with a new one with effect from the 2009 elections. MEPs' assistants in Brussels now have a formal EU statute and are employed directly by the EP administration. Assistants in the MEPs' countries of origin are paid through officially qualified paying agents, who ensure their contracts meet all national law requirements and that tax and social security arrangements are properly handled. None of the Parliamentary Assistance Allowance is paid to or through the MEPs themselves. The budget (of €21,209 per month) is held by the Parliament, and the costs of employing assistants are deducted as they are paid out. Any unspent funds remain with the Parliament. In general, MEPs may no longer have close relatives among their staff, though there is a transitional period to 2014 for those individuals already employed in the previous parliamentary term. (L.C./transl.rt)