Next EU Chief Will Save Cash by Living in Her Brussels Office

(Bloomberg) -- The new president of the European Union’s executive arm plans to live in a small studio inside the headquarters of the institution she will be leading, her spokesman said.

Even though Ursula von der Leyen will earn more than 25,000 euros ($27,000) per month, she won’t rent an apartment in Brussels. Instead she will stay in a “small retreat” of approximately 25 square meters at the Berlaymont office building, which houses the European Commission.

The move is intended to avoid additional expenditure on security, her spokesman said, which would be necessary if she rents an apartment or a room in a hotel, like her predecessor Jean-Claude Juncker. The arrangement is also practical because the German head of the Commission won’t be stuck in the Belgian capital’s infamous traffic jams, her aide said.

The European Commission proposes, monitors and enforces legislation across the 28-nation bloc and other members of the European Economic Area. It has the authority to negotiate free-trade agreements and the power to block mergers between corporate behemoths.

Juncker has complained in the past that the president of the Commission isn’t entitled to an official residence. Instead the president must use their salary to secure accommodation in Brussels.

Von der Leyen, a mother of seven, will keep her family residence in Hanover, where her husband also works. A doctor by training, she used to live in her Berlin office when she was defense minister in Germany.

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.