Brussels, 16/06/2005 (Agence Europe) - As anticipated, the committee on legal affairs of the European Parliament has approved- with a few abstentions- the report by Giuseppe Gargani (Forza Italia), supporting the compromise proposed by the Luxembourg Presidency in view of the definitive adoption of the status of Members of the European Parliament. This report will be put to the plenary at its session to be held in Brussels on 23 June. Its approval will allow the Council to give it its blessing ahead of the definitive adoption of the status by the Parliament.
The draft agreement will set the MEPs' monthly salary at 7,000 EUR, in order to plug the gaps in pay between the MEPs. Currently, MEPs receive the same remuneration as their national counterparts. Under the new regime, MEPs will be paid out of the European budget. They will be subject to community tax, although the Member States reserve the right to apply an additional rate of taxation in line with national tax rules. The agreement provides a transition period for Member Estates to apply a different system to that provided for by the status to the members voted in by their citizens, if they wish to. The travel costs of all MEPs will be paid for on the basis of real costs as opposed to on the basis of a per diem rate as currently, which will make the system more transparent. Members will be subject to a common regime for pensions, which will be paid for by the Parliament.