Republic sceptical over EU staff call

The Government has responded with scepticism to a call by the European Commission for 500 new staff to help prepare for EU enlargement. The Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Mr Tom Parlon, said that the Commission should replace retiring staff with officials from the candidate countries.

"There are over 800 situations vacant in the Commission. It doesn't make much sense to get in another 500," he said.

Mr Parlon was in Brussels to attend a meeting of EU budget ministers at which the EU budget for 2003 had its first reading.

The EU executive had asked for a 4.8 per cent increase in its administrative budget, which is around €5 billion. This included costs related to the planned admission in 2004 of 10 mainly east European countries which, for instance, will increase the need for translators.

However, finance officials from the 15 member-states, backed by representatives of the European Parliament, forced the Commission to settle for an increase of less than 3 per cent, according to the EU executive's calculations.

The Budget Commissioner, Ms Michaele Schreyer, warned that the recent rise in the value of the euro would mean that outlays are €500-€600 million higher than anticipated in the 2003 budget plans.

The euro is now 16 per cent stronger than the $0.88 rate officials had expected when they started working on the budget and will increase the cost of subsidies paid to farmers, which are adjusted for the dollar-denominated world price of farm produce.

At a time when the biggest contributors, such as Germany, are trying to keep the EU budget in check, the Commission had little chance of getting its way, according to Mr Terence Wynn, chairman of the European Parliament's budget committee.

"Hell will freeze over before the Council would have an increase [in spending] in category five," where money for administrative spending comes from, Mr Wynn said after the meeting.

The current chairman of EU finance ministers, Mr Thor Pedersen, said the deal would allow the EU's institutions to plan ahead.

"This creates a basis for the staffing of institutions in 2003 that will be required to prepare for enlargement," Mr Pedersen added.

But Ms Schreyer protested that the less than 3 per cent increase was less than half the increase in the administration budget of the decision-making Council of Ministers.