European taxpayers could save millions of euro per year if the European Parliament had one instead of three seats, Slovak MEP and Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) chairperson Richard Sulík stated on Tuesday. At the same time, Sulík announced that he has become a member of the Single Seat initiative that is pushing for one place of work for the 751-member assembly.
The European Parliament currently meets in Brussels and Strasbourg, with the city of Luxembourg serving as home for the administrative offices. “This [single-seat initiative] is being blocked by France. But if there are enough MEPs and sufficient pressure, we could gradually achieve this goal”, said Sulík, emphasising that the present expenditures for the seats amount to €114 million a year. According to Sulík, most MEPs are in favour of a single seat, but it's not up to the European Parliament to decide on the issue. Sulík claimed that such a consolidation could help save not only money but also time. The liberal MEP calculated that 20 days a year are taken up in travelling and logistics between the three locations.
