Nikki Sinclaire signs off accounts - again

PRESS RELEASE

WEST MIDLANDS MEP SIGNS OFF ACCOUNTS - ONCE AGAIN!

Issue Date: 1^st February 2012

West Midlands MEP Nikki Sinclaire has this week had her accounts successfully audited for the third year.

This is embarrassing for the Parliament she sits in, as the European Union has failed to get their accounts audited for 17 years.

The Independent MEP made her promise at the time when she took her role that she would be completely transparent when it came to her finances, and she proved this when she was the first MEP to get their accounts scrutinised by auditors. Nikki has also encouraged other MEPs to get their finances to be scrutinised in such a way. 

Nikki said, “In times of financial austerity, it is important that the electorate know where their money is spent. Transparency is my number one aim. With the European Union being unable to audit its accounts for the past 17 years, it is no wonder that the majority of this country questions our membership”.

In fact for the year (1^st January – 31^st December 2011), Nikki subsidised her general expenditure to the tune of £41927.47, which has helped fund her work in the West Midlands region.

Nikki’s General expenditure allowance (as specified in Article 28 of the EU regulations)

Office management and running costs in particular heating and running costs (heating, lighting, insurance and cleaning)	£23,152.73
The cost of purchasing or renting office equipment	£966.12
Telephone, including mobile phone and postal charges	£29,409.02
The cost of office supplies and stationery	£3196.77
The cost of purchasing books, periodicals and newspapers	£290.73
The cost of using public data consultation networks	£35
The expenses involved in equipping Members with communications equipment and maintaining that equipment, for example the purchase or rental of a telephone, a fax machine, a computer, a modem or communications card, a printer, other IT equipment, computer peripherals and software packages:	£3,318.42
The cost of a subscription to the Internet and to databases:	£545.15
Representation activities:	£22,176.86
Hotel bills and other related expenses incurred in travelling in a Member’s Member State of election:	£3,887.07

·         Total General Expenditure: £86,977.87

·         Nikki’s subsidies to General Expenditure: £41927.47

·         Total General Expenditure Allowance received from

·         the EU: £45,050.40

·         This payment is received by every UK MEP from the EU regardless of their expenditure for this period.

It is not the first time that Ms. Sinclaire has supplemented her general expenditure to fund her work in the West Midlands, with a contribution in 2009 and 2010 of £10,453.00 and £26,512.00 respectively.

Nikki was presented with her audit certificate this week. This can be viewed online at http://yourmep.org/transparency-accounts-2011.html

ENDS

Speech in Strasbourg, The EU´s Accounts are not signed off... AGAIN!

This is the text of a speech I just gave in the European Parliament concerning the accounts of the EU.

Mr President, what I find deplorable is the smug acquiescence of the EU in its continued failure to manage acceptable accounting procedures.

The people of the UK who are after all the second largest contributors to this project - are sick and tired of the EU and all of the corruption that goes on. Especially as people are witnessing severe cutbacks of public services.

What I find most alarming is the notion by the unelected Commission is the fact that because this happens year after year -17 in fact - that it is in someway acceptable.

It is clear that the EU has shown its inability to guarantee that it has legitimately spent taxpayers money.

This just underlines just how outrageous it is that the European Commission is seeking another increase in it's budget when there are question marks of billions of euros of expenditure