A petition started by EU employees against former European Commission President José Manuel Barroso with more than 150,000 signatures has been handed to officials in Brussels.<br /><br /> They want action to be taken against Barroso for joining Goldman Sachs, a bank that helped Greece hide the true extent of its budget deficit and sold toxic subprime mortgage products in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis.<br /><br /> The petition says he should be stripped of his EU pension and other perks awarded to former leaders of the institution. <br /><br /> Officials who signed the petition have called Barroso’s appointment to the US investment bank as “a gift for eurosceptics.”<br /><br /> Amid the Barroso uproar, former Commissioner Neelie Kroes was found to be listed as a director of an offshore fund in Bahamas during her tenure in Brussels.<br /><br /> There is no suggestion either have done anything illegal, but it underlines the blurry EU ethics rules.<br /><br /> Commissioners usually should wait 18 months after leaving office before accepting paid roles in the private sector, as was the case with Barroso.<br /><br /> He is to advise the US investment bank and its clients on Brexit and other EU related matters.<br />
