Outgoing Finnish MEP Heidi Hautala (Green) has criticised the General Expenditure Allowance granted to European parliamentarians due to a lack of accountability on how the money is spent.
According to Yle's information, MEPs receive up to 5,000 euros in expenditure allowances every month, on top of their salaries.
Hautala told Yle that some MEPs view the allowance as a salary supplement, while others diligently save receipts and report their expenses.
The European Parliament said it has improved the system to make the expenses system more transparent, but in Hautala's view the changes do not go far enough.
"There is very little accountability, even to the extent that it is entirely up to the MEP to decide what to do with it [the money], without any obligation to keep receipts. The money is not meant to be a salary payment, but there is currently no way to monitor it," Hautala noted.
Since first being elected in 1995, Hautala has served as an MEP for more than two decades over a number of terms.
MEPs receive a gross salary of 10,000 euros per month. They first pay an EU tax, leaving them with a net sum of about 7,800 euros. This figure is then also subject to a national taxation rate, so an MEP's final take-home pay depends on the income tax rate in their home country.
MEP pushback on more monitoring
However, the General Expenditure Allowance stays the same regardless of tax rates. Although it is intended to be used to pay for expenses like office supplies, taxi fares, office space rent or other costs incurred while carrying out their duties, Hautala said it is essentially up to the MEP how they spend the money.
She further noted that there has been resistance to calls for the system to be more closely monitored, with some saying such controls would be an "administrative burden."
"For example, the monitoring of expense reimbursements could be done through spot checks or a separate account to which the reimbursement would be paid," Hautala suggested.
As a comparison, she noted that any travel booked though the EU Parliament's own agency is very closely controlled, with MEPs having to report exactly what the trips are and why they are being made.
"Of course, it's a bit of a chore to collect and catalogue the receipts every month, but I think it's part of good housekeeping," Hautala said.
The European Parliamentary elections are set to take place in Finland on 9 June.
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