Eurocrats could spend 3m taxpayers' money for boob jobs, Viagra
Leaked documents have revealed that nearly 3 million pounds of taxpayers' money will be spent this year by Members of the European Parliament on health care, cosmetic surgery and on drugs such as Viagra.
According to the documents of the Practical Guide to the Reimbursement of Medical Expenses, European Parliament's 736 members and their families can claim for breast surgery, anti-ageing products and slimming treatments from a private health scheme, reports the Daily Mail.
Taxpayers are also expected to fund at least two-thirds of the cost of trips to health spas under the lax medical expenses regime.
In some cases MEPs can claim back the entire costs of treatment.
The 2.9m pounds budget for Euro MPs' medical expenses also covers alternative therapies and new age treatments, including lymphatic drainage - a form of massage that advocates claim helps the body eliminate toxins.
The husbands and sons of female MEPs can also claim for private treatment to resolve problems with impotence. Viagra is available if the condition is the result of a serious illness.
Critics condemned the cost of the scheme at a time of financial austerity, which have risen by a staggering 36 per cent since last year, when the programme cost 2.2m pounds.
The lavish system of perks available for MEPs is even more generous than the controversial system of payments for MPs in Westminster.
While British MPs have successfully claimed the cost of some medical procedures under their expenses regime, they do not have a dedicated private health scheme.
It is also better than that available to most ordinary voters. While most NHS Trusts in the UK will only fund three cycles of IVF treatment MEPs are entitled to five.
"You couldn't make it up. It is grotesquely outrageous. How on earth they think this can be justified just beggars belief," Tory MP Philip Davies said.
Tory MP Douglas Carswell added, "Until we have an in-out referendum Europe is going to keep on costing us more in ever higher perks for MEPs and Eurocrats."
"We managed to end the extreme nonsense of the expenses system in Westminster because we were able to sack the MPs concerned. Until we get the chance to sack the Eucroracts, Brussels is going to keep taking us to the cleaners," he said.
Source: ANI
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