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Attard Montalto: not the time for salary increase for MEPs
Matthew Vella
MaltaToday has discovered that Labour Party MEP's are not ceding to pressure to have salaries for MEPs increased from EUR1,300 a month (Lm540) to that equivalent to a Minister’s salary, which is tagged at over Lm12,000 a year (EUR28,800).
MaltaToday is informed that Malta’s permanent representative to the EU Richard Cachia Caruana was looking into the matter of MEP salaries, given that the Maltese europarliamentarian salary is one of the lowest at the EP. It appears that the ploy was to have the request for an increase in salaries originating from the Labour side not from the PN side.
Cachia Caruana was present at a meeting held at Castille between Malta’s MEPs and Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi when the subject was broached to see whether an increase in MEPs’ salaries could be gained.
At present, the monthly wage for an MEP reflects that of a Maltese MP, totalling around EUR1,300 (Lm540). MEPs have complained of being unable to conduct a full-time stint in Brussels on the current pay level.
The bid to have Malta’s MEPs salaries increased from that of a Maltese MP to the level of a minister is at present not in John Attard Montalto’s books.
The MLP’s head of delegation at the European Parliament, told this newspaper that a salary increase for MEPs would give a “wrong impression” at a time when so many sectors of society are making sacrifices.
Asked whether he believed MEPs deserve a higher wage, John Attard Montalto told MaltaToday that in the light of “certain sacrifices being requested by various employees from management downwards in such public entities like Air Malta, the time would not be politically correct for an increase in salaries.”
A Maltese MEP is paid EUR1,300 every month, however this is bolstered by a reimbursement of flights to Brussels, Strasbourg and Luxembourg, plus a per kilometre rate for the entire distance covered. The MEPs are also paid EUR260 (Lm108) for every full day of their committee meetings, which average around three days every month. Additionally, they are allocated EUR3,700 (Lm1,541) in office expenses every month; EUR12,546 (Lm5,227) every month for the employment of their staff; and a yearly allocation of EUR35,000 (Lm14,580) for a seminar or conference organised by the MEP.
John Attard Montalto however excludes that Maltese MEPs are paid handsomely: “Being an MEP is a full-time job and one has to appreciate there is a certain degree of discomfort to travel every week from Sunday to Thursday to Brussels, unless one is stationed there. With the current pay, it is impossible to live in Brussels.
“Some of the comments made about MEPs’ allowances are usually made by people who are not cognisant with what it entails to be an MEP. I employ a full-time assistant in Brussels, and two assistants in Malta.
“When one takes into consideration the salaries they receive, this absorbs almost all of the allowance given for employment purposes. Any misappropriation of these funds could mean internal investigations being carried out by the EU’s administrative section, which may also lead to criminal proceedings.”
Attard Montalto also said that in the past, MEPs attempted to boost their personal income by employing family members or their spouses: “This is something which is frowned upon in the EU and I am sure that nobody from the Maltese delegation will make such a mistake because it will reflect extremely negatively both on the country and on the party. I have full faith in the integrity of both Joseph Muscat and Louis Grech.”
In January 2004, Germany, France, Austria and Sweden rejected proposals to introduce a single wage scale for all MEPs irrespective of the wages paid by the national parliaments from where they hailed. The proposal suggested MEPs receive a monthly wage of Lm3,802 (EUR9,053) excluding allowances.
As things stand there are huge wage differences between MEPs of different countries. Italian MEPs are the highest paid with a gross monthly salary of Lm5,039 (EUR12,000), while their Spanish counterparts earn Lm1,259 (EUR3,000) per month. The new member States’ MEPs have the lowest wages: Hungarian MEPs are expected to receive a wage of Lm335 (EUR800) per month while Lithuanian deputies can expect to pocket around Lm146 (EUR350) every month.
matthew@newsworksltd.com
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