A petition started by EU employees against former European Commission President José Manuel Barroso with more than 150,000 signatures has been handed to officials in…
ADVERTISEMENTA petition started by EU employees against former European Commission President José Manuel Barroso with more than 150,000 signatures has been handed to officials in Brussels.
They want action to be taken against Barroso for joining Goldman Sachs, a bank that helped Greece hide the true extent of its budget deficit and sold toxic subprime mortgage products in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis.
The petition says he should be stripped of his EU pension and other perks awarded to former leaders of the institution.
Officials who signed the petition have called Barroso’s appointment to the US investment bank as “a gift for eurosceptics.”
Amid the Barroso uproar, former Commissioner Neelie Kroes was found to be listed as a director of an offshore fund in Bahamas during her tenure in Brussels.
There is no suggestion either have done anything illegal, but it underlines the blurry EU ethics rules.
Commissioners usually should wait 18 months after leaving office before accepting paid roles in the private sector, as was the case with Barroso.
He is to advise the US investment bank and its clients on Brexit and other EU related matters.