By Martin Banks - 17th February 2012
It is important that MEPs show some leadership
George Lyon
MEPs in Strasbourg have voted to freeze their own allowances until mid-2014 and cap the travel budget at the present level.
The move comes amid demands that all EU institutions, including parliament, cut their administrative spending.
Parliament, in particular, found itself in the firing line recently when the full scale - and cost - of overseas travel by MEPs on parliamentary delegations last year was revealed.
Those MEPs who had been calling for a rise, rather than a freeze, in the EU budget for next year, were also heavily criticised.
The outcome of the voting during the parliamentary plenary means that the various allowances MEPs receive, which includes covering the cost of employing staff in Brussels and home member states as well as a daily allowance, will remain at present levels until the next European elections in just over two years' time.
The vote was greeted by George Lyon, a UK Liberal Democrat member and deputy chair of parliament's budget committee.
Lyon, who is pushing for the EU budget to be radically restructured and independently evaluated to find further savings, said, "At a time when people across the country struggle to make ends meet, it is important that MEPs show some leadership in keeping parliament's costs under control.
"Freezing allowances and travel expenses is a good start. But I believe that we can make many more savings. In order to ensure that taxpayers are getting maximum value for their money, we need to have an independent evaluation of the EU budget to get rid of any inefficiencies and waste."
MEPs also voted on Thursday to endorse a report which once again calls for an end to parliament’s split-site arrangement which sees deputies and a small army of staff shuffling between Brussels and Strasbourg every month.
They voted in favour of a single seat with 329 for, 223 against and 29 abstentions.
The outcome was also welcomed by Lyon, who said, "I am very pleased that once again MEPs have also voted to push for a single seat of parliament. It is an outrage that member states still insist that parliament travels between Brussels and Strasbourg each month.
"MEPs are quite right in calling for an urgent evaluation of this situation."
A source for the EPP group, parliament's largest, also welcomed Thursday's votes on the budget, telling this website, "The EPP group position on the budget of parliament was fairly straightforward - the administrative budgets of parliament and the other EU institutions should be frozen.
"Moreover, the group also supported a freeze on parliament budget lines related to all travel in 2013 and no indexation on any of the members' individual allowances until the end of the legislature.
"We also say that an independent evaluation of parliament's budget and the setting up of a working group should be considered and concrete savings should be proposed by no later than the end of 2012."
He added, "We were successful in the vote on all these points."
