Next Thursday a new book by me and David Craig - author of the influential Plundering the Public Sector and Squandered books - will be released, The Great European Rip-Off. You can pre-order the book already but, in the meantime, we have revealed dynamite new evidence of how too many MEPs enrich themselves at the taxpayers’ expense.
Among the explosive findings in the book are details about the Galvin Report which contains evidence of widespread abuse. MEPs have been paying expenses to shell companies, huge bonuses are paid to use up an MEP’s staff allowance and travel expenses are wide open to abuse.
We have also shown that, while still living comfortably and enjoying the basic staffing and facilities they need, MEPs can rack up enough in dodgy expenses claims to emerge a millionaire after a single term in the European Parliament. On top of that, thanks to a combination of tax changes, exchange rate movements and a pay rise MEPs will be getting a 47% pay rise this year.
Not all MEPs are rotten. The Conservative MEPs, under the leadership of Timothy Kirkhope MEP, led the way earlier this year by publishing expenses details online, but there are far too many MEPs abusing their expenses and enjoying the gravy train. For many European parliamentarians, getting elected has become a route to personal enrichment rather than a way of serving their constituents. This doesn’t just cost taxpayers’ money that is lost to fraud but makes honest politics impossible.
