Millions of euros have been earmarked to finance the luxury expenses of the EU's top leaders, while average European citizens skimp on food and cannot properly heat their homes.

EU to increase spending on private jets for top officials

EU institutions will soon be able to spend millions more on private jet flights for their top officials, politico.eu writes. Brussels has increased the amount that can be spent on „air taxi” flights for officials to 13.5 million euros, according to a document on the EU’s tender database, while the population and governments across Europe have been called on to be frugal.

The new four-year contract – which will cover flights for the European Commission, the Parliament, the Council and the External Action Service – replaces the existing five-year arrangement that set 10.71 million euros as the maximum limit that could be spent on private jets between 2016 and 2021.

A Commission spokesperson said the new contract – which covers an estimated 1,606 flight hours, almost half of which would be used for mid-range trips between 6,500 and 10,000 kilometers – reflects the „potential increase in demand, mainly due to the pandemic.”

„Fewer commercial flights have been available and therefore this increase of maximum ceiling is designed to ensure the availability of this solution should such problems persist over time,” the spokesperson said. „The value of a contract corresponds to an estimation of the needs and does not necessarily mean that the entire amount will be spent.”

The new contract comes on the heels of the July release of the Commission’s Fit for 55 climate package, which aims to set the bloc on course to slash greenhouse gas emissions 55 per cent by 2030. In the long run, by 2050, the EU is eyeing an emissions reduction of 90 per cent compared to 1990 levels.

The available information reveals that Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has taken six private jet flights in 2020 and eight in 2021. Her predecessor, Jean-Claude Juncker, who treated his sciatica with alcohol, took 14 such flights „for business” in 2019 not only for long-hauls, but also for short-distance trips, despite the fact that EU leaders regularly encourage citizens to travel by train instead of flying for shorter distances.

A Bizottság szerint a bérelt gépeket csak kivételes körülmények esetén, például biztonsági okokból veszik igénybe, vagy ha a szükséges időpontokban nem állnak rendelkezésre kereskedelmi járatok. Ez az érvelés azonban nem állja meg a helyét, ugyanis a korábbi bizottsági elnök még Brüsszel és Strasbourg között is magánrepülővel ingázott.

The Commission said chartered trips are only for „exceptional circumstances,” such as for security reasons or if a commercial flight isn’t available or doesn’t fit with diary commitments. This, however, is not true, as the former EC president commuted by private jet even between Brussels and the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

Council President Charles Michel has taken 2 private air taxi flights in 2021. This compares with 17 in 2020, and 27 flights taken by the Council president in 2019 — although the Council did not specify how many of those were taken by Michel’s predecessor, Donald Tusk, who was in the role until November 30 of that year.

A Council official said the institution’s own rules stipulate that only the president is eligible to fly “exceptionally” on official business by chartered aircraft, and only when „no suitable commercial service is available,” in cases of „urgency, to avoid undue delays, for complex and multi-destination trips, or where security considerations preclude the trip being made by a scheduled flight.”

Brussels footed the bill for one of the most expensive parties in the world

This is not the only case, however when Brussels, which encourages people to save money, throws away huge sums. The Commission’s foreign aid department has recently spent a total of 387 thousand euros to develop a metaverse platform to promote its Global Gateway initiative. Under this umbrella the Commission aims to fork out 300 billion euros by 2027 to build new infrastructure in developing countries.

Only five people showed up to the virtual party that Tuesday evening. Devex correspondent Vince Chadwick tweeted that he was eventually the only party guest left, after „initial bemused chats with the roughly five other humans who showed up.”

I’m here at the “gala” concert in the EU foreign aid dept’s €387k metaverse (designed to attract non politically engaged 18-35 year olds — see story below). After initial bemused chats with the roughly five other humans who showed up, I am alone. https://t.co/ChIHeXasQP pic.twitter.com/kZWIVlKmhL

— Vince Chadwick (@vchadw) November 29, 2022

Apparently only a few of the 44 people who liked the official trailer were intrigued enough by the avatars dancing to house music on a tropical island to actually join „the party.”

A spokesperson for the Commission told Devex that the promotional post’s purpose was to „increase awareness of what the EU does on the world stage” among 18-to-35-year-olds on „primarily TikTok and Instagram” who are „neutral about the EU” and „not typically exposed to such information.”

The prodigal son

The fact that the European Union is increasing its spending despite economic difficulties is not surprising when one considers that due to their superior wealth, the Commissioners who decide on spending are not affected by sanctions or the rising cost of living across the EU. As reported by V4NA, an EU commissioner, who has millions in assets, has mockingly described the anti-Russia sanctions impoverishing Europe as part of a „reduced diet.” In the meantime, during a period of war and epidemics, he has increased his wealth by hundreds of thousands of euros in recent years, his assets declaration reveals.

Spain’s Joseph Borell is a member of the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party and, by his own admission, he has a fortune of millions of euros. His wealth continued to grow during his term as Commissioner, and he payed off hundreds of thousands of euros in debts in the past two years.

Before becoming an EU Commissioner, he also filed a declaration of assets and liabilities as Spain’s foreign minister, which was made public in March 2020. Mr Borell then declared a so-called liability of 337,278 euros, in addition to owning some properties worth 2.2 million euros.

However, his 2022 asset declaration no longer included any liabilities, meaning he managed to recover hundreds of thousands of euros from his €25,000 salary in just two years.

It is clear from his asset declaration that, during the health crisis and the pandemic, as well as the war-torn period,

the EU Commissioner has made hundreds of thousands of euros.

Reading the asset declaration of the Socialist politician, it is also striking that he keeps 200 thousand euros in cash or securities in three companies, and he also has a large amount of shares. He owns almost 55,000 euros worth of shares and securities in BBVA, one of the largest multinational service companies in Spain, and

he has a stake in the chemical sector, owning 184 shares issued by the Bayer group.

It is also noteworthy that the commissioner owns six properties in Spain, and one in Brussels. When he is not in Brussels, he lives with his wife in Valdemorillo, near Madrid. He also enjoys a luxurious environment there, as the property offers a view of the nearby Valmayor reservoir.

The leftist politician, who by no means rejects luxury, also boasts a palace of 512 square metres, complete with a backyard and a pool in a quiet part of the town called La Pobla de Segur. He is, however, doing all he can to hide his real wealth, as well as many aspects of his private life. Of course, the list is far from complete, as the wealthy politician also happens to own other properties in the capital, as well as in his native village.

The energy commissioner who wastes energy

Mr Borell, however, is not the only top-level EU official to live a luxurious lifestyle. People should heat much less and showering should be kept to a minimum, Frans Timmermans said earlier. In his view, it is not always necessary for clothes to be washed, as it’s sometimes enough to just air them. He also asked motorists to cycle instead, arguing that they could help Europe to decrease its dependence on Russian energy carriers.

However, few people know that Frans Timmermans’s luxury villa is just an hour and a half’s drive from Brussels, which shows that the vice-president in charge of green policy drinks wine while preaching water.

Built in 1937, the vice president’s multi-storey villa – boasting 12 rooms in total – looks like a hotel at first glance. The building has a “G” energy label, one of the lowest ratings according to the EU’s efficiency standards. It means the occupants of the property use so much energy that it would have been destined for demolition in certain European states. Thus, while being a huge consumer of energy and electricity, Mr Timmermans demands that people switch to renewable sources with immediate effect, something unaffordable for the average citizen. In the meantime, he did not bother upgrading his home with solar collectors or improving its energy efficiency in any other way.

He bought his house for some half a million euros and its value now possibly exceeds 1 million euros.