City of Strasbourg Ripping off the EU for 25 years

An April 25, 2006 EUobserver. com article by Teresa Kuchler and Andrew Rettman titled MEPs stumble onto Strasbourg con writes that:

"The French city of Strasbourg has been overcharging the European Parliament up to €2.7 million a year in rent for as long 25 years, MEPs were told for the first time on Tuesday (25 April)."

That's €67.5 million, another inexcusable EU pork barrel for France.

In addition, as written in that same article:

"The Strasbourg, Alsace location costs the EU €200 million a year in travel fees and causes logistics-related strife for VIPs and their assistants."

€200 million a year is € 1 billion in five years, all for no other reason than to unnecessarily put the money of other EU countries into the pockets of France.

There is no question that the European Parliament has no business being in Strasbourg and that it should be moved out at the earliest opportunity.

Indeed, EU institutions should be apportioned equally throughout the EU Member States, which means that most institutions now found in the French-speaking countries should be moved elsewhere. France has done nothing for the EU to deserve this preferred treatment and no service is being done to the EU by having EU institutions in France.

Quite the contrary. We refer here to our previous postings on France as the major problem of the EU today, see here, here and here.