A secret European Union report has revealed widespread criminal abuse of staff allowances by members of the European Parliament, worth nearly £100m a year.

Senior MEPs made attempts to hush up the internal audit that uncovered the misuse of funds, which amounted to about £125,000 for each of the 785 MEPs who constitute the parliament.

The report, by the internal auditor, is understood to contain details of several MEPs who diverted hundreds of thousands a year to 'providers' who are supposed to be accountants, professionals or companies delivering administrative services.

However, in many cases, the entire allowance is paid to a single individual or MEP's member of staff – some of which appear suspicious as they are twice as large as the £61,820 salary paid to a British MEP.

Yet some of the MEPs who made the claims either had just one member of staff or none at all.

A source who read the report said: 'Some service providers simply do not exist. Others are individuals that work for or are dependent on the Euro-MP.'

Last week the Dutch finance minister refused to sign off the EU's accounts over concerns that that national governments are not taking enough responsibility for the European money they spend.

The extent of the abuse is so severe that parliamentary authorities are understood to be 'terrified' by the contents of the report, and have therefore sought to prevent it being published or getting into any public forum.

Secretary-general of the European Assembly, Harald Rømer, was asked late on Monday night to take measures to ensure there was no 'collateral damage' from the report. The request was made by the Assembly's president, Gert Pöttering.

The only individuals allowed to view the report are those on the parliament's budget control committee, who have to make applications to enter a 'secret room' protected by biometric locks and security guards. Those who view the report are not allowed to take notes and have to sign a confidentiality agreement.

A parliamentary spokesman denied the cover-up, which has not named individuals, following enquiries from The Daily Telegraph.

Further reading:
Dutch refuse to sign off EU accounts
Fraud probe into MEPs' expenses
EC launches crackdown on funding