Jean-Claude Juncker used private jets for nearly half his worldwide 'missions' this year, official figures reveal.

These 'air taxis' should only be used when no suitable commercial flights can be found, according to EU Commission rules.

But Mr Juncker chartered private jets for 21 out of 43 official trips between January and November, racking up a bill that is likely to run into hundreds of thousands of pounds, a Daily Mail analysis reveals.

The revelation sparked calls last night for the EU Commission president to be investigated over his allegedly 'excessive' use of private flights, which are funded by EU taxpayers.

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Juncker chartered private jets for 21 out of 43 official trips between January and November

The cost of one private jet for a one-night trip to Tunisia alone was up to £32,943. The EU Commission declined to give the exact bill, but confirmed that Mr Juncker flew with a 13-person delegation and that travel costs averaged £2,357 per person.

He met Tunisian officials to discuss projects between the north African country and the EU during the trip in October.

In addition, Mr Juncker, who after a pay rise will earn more than £350,000 a year, claimed £428 for a hotel and £47 for 'daily allowances'.

The cost of another private jet for a visit in November to Helsinki in Finland, where he had dinner with world leaders before attending the European People's Party conference, was up to £23,422.

Again the EU Commission declined to give the exact bill, but confirmed that Mr Juncker went with an 11-person delegation and that travel costs averaged £1,953 per person.

The most expensive 'per person' private jet trip was a one-night visit to Madrid for a lecture and to meet King Felipe VI of Spain before attending an exclusive ceremony for the Marquis de Villalobar award.

Travel per person is listed as £6,734, but the overall cost of the private jet has not been revealed.

A four-night tour of West Balkan countries was the second most expensive per person for travel, at £6,374.

Other private jets were used when Mr Juncker was giving speeches and two were for 'working' dinners and lunches with German chancellor Angela Merkel. He took six private jets to events in neighbouring Germany.

Mr Juncker sparked fury in 2017 after it emerged that he chartered a £24,000 private jet to fly to Rome with a delegation of nine

Mr Juncker sparked fury in 2017 after it emerged that he chartered a £24,000 private jet to fly to Rome with a delegation of nine.

The new disclosures come as Britain is set to pay a Brexit 'divorce' bill of £39billion if it agrees a Brexit deal with the EU.

Responding to the revelations, Tory MEP David Campbell Bannerman said: 'It seems that 'Air Force Juncket' breaches the guidelines laid down on excessive use of private jets by the EU.

'This is another example of the EU burning UK and European taxpayers' money.

'Why Mr Juncker hasn't taken up the good quality commercial alternatives that fly across Europe is a mystery, a mystery the EU's auditors should look into.'

Pieter Cleppe, of the think-tank Open Europe, said: 'This appears as more evidence of a culture within the EU institutions where there is insufficient respect for taxpayers.'

Details of the private planes are tucked away in a section of the EU Commission's website which does not immediately make clear when one has been taken.

Rather than giving the total cost of chartering each jet, it states only the 'average cost per person on the flight'.

But it does not state how many people were on each flight, making it almost impossible to calculate the total cost of each jet.

Details of the Tunisia and Helsinki trips were given by the EU Commission after the Mail asked a series of questions.

It did not give further details for any of Mr Juncker's other listed 'missions', but confirmed that between January and November he flew by private jet to 21 of the 43 overseas destinations listed on his webpage. Most were in Europe.

For long-haul trips, such as EU-China and EU-Japan summits and a meeting with President Donald Trump in Washington in July, he used commercial airlines.

Mr Juncker used his 2018 State of the EU speech to warn of the threat of climate change, which campaigners say is fuelled by emissions from air travel. He said Europeans want to 'leave a cleaner planet for future generations'.

But many of the flights he took were over relatively short distances. For example, Brussels is only 405 miles from Berlin as the crow flies.

A spokesman claimed yesterday that the EU Commission is 'one of the most transparent administrations in the world'.

He also pointed out that delegations formed of several people use the private jets, bringing down the cost per head.

'The Commission has rules which ensure that we carry out our work – including travel – in the most cost-effective way possible,' he said.

'The way we spend the EU budget is controlled annually by the democratically elected European Parliament.'

The spokesman claimed 'the bulk of travel' by Mr Juncker is on commercial airlines, adding: 'By our own rule, the use of chartered air transport can only be considered when commercial flights are not available to reach a destination, when they cannot fit with the president's diary commitments or for security reasons.'