An article in the WSJ looks at the elections and writes: "Wanted: 736 Europeans to earn $120,000 a year with 12 weeks off, plenty of perks and little accountability." It goes on to say, "For a job with such sweet terms, getting elected isn't all that tough. Election turnout is so low - as low as 20% in some countries - that winning election can require little more than getting on a large party's ticket or appealing to niche constituencies."
The article also looks at the EP's Europarl TV channel, launched last year at a cost of $13 million, and only available on the internet. When asked how many hits it gets, an EU official is quoted saying, "You won't get me to answer that".
Late last year, it became fashionable to predict the dollar's demise. This year, however, shaky state finances within the European common currency zone have many worried about the future of the euro. Even the EU thinks the monetary union could be in danger.
An article in the WSJ looks at the elections and writes: "Wanted: 736 Europeans to earn $120,000 a year with 12 weeks off, plenty of perks and little accountability." It goes on to say, "For a job with such sweet terms, getting elected isn't all that tough. Election turnout is so low - as low as 20% in some countries - that winning election can require little more than getting on a large party's ticket or appealing to niche constituencies."
WILFRIED MARTENS, the former prime minister of Belgium and a grand old man of Christian Democratic politics in Europe, is not the first person to observe that the euro deserves thanks for keeping Belgium calm during the country's current political crisis (103 days without a new government). But he is the best qualified to make this point.
The European Union is spending £3.8 billion a year on "propaganda" to win over its sceptical citizens.
