“It is an embarrassing victory for Brussels,” remarks Le Figaro. “At a time when the  Commission is telling member states to tighten their belts, the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg has ruled in favour of EU civil servants who filed suit to defend their right to a 3.7% payrise. The news will be a bitter pill for national governments, who argued that ‘in view of the current crisis’ the increase should be divided in two.”

The French daily explains that in its 24 November ruling, the court concluded that the European Council “did not have the margin of appreciation” to cancel an annual scheduled increase in the salaries of 45,000 EU civil servants in a period of economic crisis. The decision may be logical, but as Le Figaro notes, “the timing of the ruling, which coincides with a general strike against austerity in Portugal and parliamentary debate on a draconian recovery plan in Ireland” is disastrous.

“The decision will likely bring more ire to the dispute over an increase to the EU’s budget, which has resulted in a power struggle between the European Parliament and Europe’s member states, which want any increase in spending to be limited to 2.9%. Both parties are waiting for the Commission to prepare a second proposal, and in the meantime, the 2011 budget will remain blocked.”