MEPs move to freeze commissioner salaries welcome

Posted by Bronwen Maher on October 01, 2010 at 11:46 AM

Labour MEP Nessa Childers welcomed this week’s vote by the European Parliaments powerful Budget Committee to freeze the salaries and allowances of European Commissioners, unless urgent changes are made to their Code of Conduct.

"This vote shows the parliament will not tolerate any repeat of a case like Charlie McCreevy, the recent former Internal Markets Commissioner, who walked straight into lucrative positions after his time in Barroso's cabinet, potentially causing a conflict of interest.

"The Commission should not have permitted Charlie McCreevy to take up a position on the Board of Ryanair soon after leaving their ranks. He has also recently taken up a Directorship position with UK-based NBNK Investments, which is actually by buying up distressed banks assets and thus feeding off the financial crisis which he himself helped create with his light-touch regulation approach to the financial markets.

"We already know that only one senior European Commission figure in the last two years has been barred from taking up a top job that may cause a conflict of interest with their former employment at the Commission.”

“According to information I have secured, 201 separate requests were made by Commission figures since January 2008 who were seeking permission to take up jobs following their time in the Commission where a potential conflict of interest with their former EU role may arise.

"The Commission's Code of Conduct which dates back to 1967, must be reviewed urgently. The Code needs to act more as a brake on the future activities of former Commissioners and not merely a set of guidelines routinely interpreted to ensure the best deal possible for former senior figures."

"With this weeks vote, the Parliament is demanding a review of the Code of Conduct for Commissioners for post-office employment; the introduction of a 'cooling-off' or 'quarantine' period of at least two years after their exit from the Commission and a much more transparent procedure to assess whether or not post-office employment is compatible with previous areas of responsibility and spheres of influence on the Commission," Nessa Childers concluded.

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