Ciarán Cannon (Progressive Democrats)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Mansergh. I join with him in congratulating all those who have been given the immense honour of representing the nation in the European Parliament and, in particular, our colleague and friend, former Senator Alan Kelly.

Members of the European Parliament are currently paid out of their respective national budgets, and at unequal rates ranging from just €840 per month in Hungary to over €12,000 in Italy. None of us would argue that Senators from Dublin should be paid more than those from Sligo, Cork or Galway, and it is time the inequity to which I refer was brought to an end.

It is important to recognise that every MEP represents an electorate of equal importance and it is only fair and appropriate that this longstanding disparity in pay and entitlements would be rectified. All MEPs should be paid an equal amount, thus giving them parity of treatment. The fact that MEPs will be paid by the EU and are not dependent on their respective national exchequers for remuneration will also offer a greater degree of independence to all of the members of the European Parliament.

New rules governing the remuneration of MEPs were adopted by the EU in September 2005 and this Bill is reasonably straightforward in that it seeks to put in place measures in Irish law to allow us comply with these new rules. MEPs who have been re-elected have the choice of opting for the new EU scheme or to continue to be paid by the Oireachtas, and this Bill makes statutory provision for that arrangement.

In the recent past there have been quite rightly many calls to provide greater transparency in the expenses regime that applies for MEPs and, indeed, for all politicians. In Ireland, there is total transparency of politicians' expenses and, thankfully, the EU seems to be heading in a similar direction.

From July of this year a number of new measures will be implemented that will provide for such transparency. Included in these measures is a proposal that all staff employed by MEPs will now be paid directly by the EU, and this Bill allows for that to occur.

No doubt the new arrangements first proposed by the EU and facilitated by this Bill are to be welcomed. They will provide for equitable treatment for all MEPs and much greater transparency in their expenses regime.