SPENDING BY EU COMMISSIONERS ON LUXURY ITEMS

That this House is appalled by the result of the research conducted by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism which has revealed that more than 7.5 million euros was spent on private jet travel for EU Commissioners between 2006 and 2010; notes that 20,000 euros was spent on gifts such as cufflinks, fountain pens and Tiffany jewellery since 2008; further notes that 300,000 euros was spent on cocktail parties; and furthernotes that during a four-day stay at a five-star hotel in New York, Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and 35 staff members ran up a bill of 28,000 euros at a time when ordinary people in the UK and in many other EU member countries are suffering major decreases in their living standards and fears about their livelihoods and futures.