Prodi and Kinnock sell the plan to deputies

Around 100 officials picketed the commission building in Brussels, and union representatives spent several hours trying to persuade the commission president, Romano Prodi, to drop the plans, which would see an end to a number of perks and the introduction of performance-related pay.

As expected, Mr Prodi and his team of commissioners listened to the arguments of the powerful staff unions but decided in the end to back change.

They approved the reforms suggested by Neil Kinnock, the former leader of the British Labour Party and now the Commission vice-president.

The reform package is part of Mr Kinnock's campaign to try to persuade a sceptical European public that the commission is working more efficiently.

The centrepiece of the plan is the linking of pay to performance.

Alien idea

At the moment, salaries for the commission's 17,000 staff can rise by up to 50% during the course of 14 years without the individual having received any kind of promotion.

Neil Kinnock: Bringing winds of change to the EC

The Kinnock plan is that salaries would rise much more slowly unless an official got a new job with more responsibilities.

Some of the money saved will be paid out to those who perform particularly well - an idea alien to the existing culture of the commission.

Mr Kinnock also wants to reduce the number of perks, like the allowances for staff and their families to travel home twice a year.

These allowances are currently paid on the basis of the first-class rail fare and can be claimed even if no journey is made.

'No consultation'

Many commission staff feel, however, that they are being punished for the past failings of the Commissioners themselves.

At a meeting with Mr Prodi and Mr Kinnock, officials bitterly criticised the proposals as an unwarranted attack on their professionalism and an attempt to weaken the commission itself.

In Britain, the opposition Conservative Party accused Mr Kinnock of doing too little too late.

"Mr Kinnock's reforms do not go far enough. There is little evidence of real change", said Francis Maude, the shadow foreign secretary.

The unions and Mr Kinnock will now spend four months consulting on the changes, but it looks as if a huge gulf separates the two sides, and strike action is a distinct possibility.