Member of the European Parliament

[2] From 1 January 2007, when Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU, there were 785 MEPs, but their number was reduced to 736 at the elections in 2009.

As the number of MEPs granted to each member state has arisen from treaty negotiations, there is no precise formula for the apportionment of seats.

For the rest of the time, it is based in Brussels, where some six supplementary plenary sessions are held for two days each,[9] and where the Parliament's committees, political groups, and other organs also mainly meet.

[10] The obligation to spend one week a month in Strasbourg was imposed on Parliament by the member state governments at the 1992 European Council meeting in Edinburgh.

Thus, since the 2009 elections, all MEPs receive a monthly pre-tax salary set at 38.5 percent of that of a judge at the European Court of Justice.

[15] The single statute represented a pay cut for MEPs from some member states (e.g. Italy, Germany and Austria), a rise for others (particularly the low-paid eastern European members) and status quo for those from the United Kingdom, until January 2020 (depending on the euro-pound exchange rate).

[17] They must also make a detailed declaration of private interests, listing their memberships of company boards, associations, and public bodies (including those held during the three years prior to their election).

In other member states, MEPs are immune from detention and from legal proceedings, except when caught in the act of committing an offense.

This immunity may be waived by application to the European Parliament by the authorities of the member state in question.

Current MEPs also include former judges, trade union leaders, media personalities, actors, soldiers, singers, athletes, and political activists.

Women are generally under-represented in politics and public life in the EU, as well as in national parliaments, governments and local assemblies.

To reach gender parity, women should hold 50 percent of seats and positions of power.

However, according to the goal set by the European Institute for Gender Equality, a ratio between 40 and 60 percent is considered acceptable.

[20] The FEMM Committee requested a study exploring the results of the election in terms of gender balance.

Other Eastern European countries, namely Romania, Greece, Lithuania and Bulgaria, all elected fewer than 30 percent female MEPs.

The number of observers and their method of appointment (usually by national parliaments) is laid down in the joining countries' Treaties of Accession.

Observers may attend debates and take part by invitation, but they may not vote or exercise other official duties.

Similarly, Croatia had 12 observer members from 17 April 2012, appointed by the Croatian parliament in preparation for its accession in 2013.