Brussels bonus bonanza: EU bureaucrats pocketing a backdated pay rise worth £74MILLION today – including £2,700 for President Juncker

• The 100 million euro pay rise comes as member states impose austerity
• European Union civil servants awarded a 2.4 per cent pay rise for 2016
• But leaked documents seen by the Mail reveal it will be backdated to July
• Farage blasts Commission President Juncker is being rewarded for 'failure'
• But bumper pay packets are declared 'not dramatic' by EU spinners

By John Stevens Brussels Correspondent For The Daily Mail

Brussels bureaucrats will today pocket thousands of euros in generous Christmas bonuses despite their shambolic handling of the migrant crisis.

In the face of the tightening of belts across continent, the European Union is to reward its civil servants with a bumper 2.4 per cent pay rise next year costing nearly 100million euros (£74million), it can be revealed.

The inflation-busting increase will be backdated six months to July meaning staff will get an extra treat in their pay packets today.

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European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, pictured at last week's EU Summit, will pick up an extra £2,701.06 in backdated pay today

European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, who this year has allowed millions of migrants to pour into Europe on his watch, will get a Christmas bonus of 3,679.86 euros (£2,701.06)

Next year's pay rise, which is much higher than current levels of inflation, will see his will rise to a staggering £230,490.68 – 60 per cent higher than the £142,500 paid to the British Prime Minister.

The former Luxembourg prime minister is also entitled to a generous £47,064 housing and expenses allowance, and will get a £48,805 a year pension from age 65, as well as £295,795.98 to help him 'resettle' and 'transition' at the end of his five-year term.

Fellow EU commissioners, including Dimitris Avramopoulos who is in charge of the EU's response to the migrant crisis, will each get a 3,000 euros (£2,202) bonus with their December pay.

A leaked document, seen by the Mail, that reveals the pay hike – which will apply to all 55,000 EU bureaucrats including those working in the European Commission, Council, Parliament and Court of Justice – also shows how staff numbers have increased hugely.

Between 2000 and 2010, the number of people working at the Commission went up 21.6 per cent, at the Council up 52.5 per cent and at the Parliament up 90.8 per cent.

Ukip leader Nigel Farage said: 'This fat bonus will only encourage Juncker to fail again and fail bigger. With Schengen falling apart and the security threat now very real we should ask why Juncker is getting rewarded for failure.

Ukip leader Nigel Farage blasted the pay rise as rewarding and encouraging failure

'As the number and scope of EU laws from the Commission decreases to there is an increase in the number and pay of EU Parliamentary staff. 

'This means more people are getting paid more money to do less work and this is unacceptable to British taxpayers.'

The pay rise ends a two-year freeze demanded by governments including the UK.

A European Commission spokesman said the salary increase was 'not dramatic' and argued that officials' pay has risen on average by 0.5 per cent a year since 2010, below the rate of inflation.

He said: 'The pay rise is under an automatic formula that leaves no room for the commission to interpret.

'The formula is based on salary increases for civil servants in 11 member states and a cost of living index for Belgium and Luxembourg.'

He added: '[Since 2010] we have increased the working week to 40 hours versus 37.5, that means people work more for the same salary.'