Members of the European Parliament are entitled to several allowances, but there’s often criticism and confusion over what the so-called “Brussels gravy train” entails. EuroVerify takes a look.
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00:00Can MEPs skip the line at airports?
00:08Being elected a Member of the European Parliament comes with a range of benefits,
00:12including overhead allowances, reimbursements of travel costs and money for meals.
00:17These advantages have sparked conversations online as to what exactly MEPs are entitled to
00:22and whether it's fair that they get them.
00:24Let's take a closer look.
00:27This video by Fidius Panayiotou, a well-known YouTuber and independent Cypriot MEP,
00:34shows his new diplomatic passport as a newly elected Member of Parliament.
00:38He says the passport allows politicians to skip the line at the airport,
00:42while also granting you free visas for countries that require them.
00:46We got in touch with the European Parliament, whose press service told us
00:49that MEPs don't get a passport with diplomatic status or diplomatic privileges or immunities.
00:54It added though that MEPs can get a laissez-passer,
00:57which they can use as a secure travel document for activities related to their parliamentary work only,
01:03in countries which recognise it as a valid travel document.
01:06What Panayiotou appears to be holding in his video is a diplomatic passport issued by the Cypriot government.
01:12These passports, given by national governments, do confer certain advantages,
01:17like quicker diplomatic lanes at airports and waived visa requirements.
01:24The European Parliament doesn't issue diplomatic passports to MEPs,
01:28but it has a list of the benefits MEPs do get.
01:31For example, they get a general expenditure allowance to cover things like computers, office rent and supplies.
01:37It stands at €4,950, and when a Member leaves office for good,
01:42they get what some would call a golden parachute.
01:45It's a transitional allowance equivalent to one month's salary per year they were in office,
01:50for up to a maximum of two years.
01:52For more investigations and fact-checks, head over to euronews.com.