The European Union has splurged almost £120 million, and rising, on little visited museums about itself.

Along with no fewer than four Europe-themed museums in Brussels, the EU has opened a further 13 “Europa Experience” centres in other capitals.

They offer virtual reality tours, meetings with digital bureaucrats, games, role play and selfie booths, all explaining how the EU works.

However, plans to establish one in each of the bloc’s 27 member states to “introduce European democracy to visitors and citizens” now hang in the balance after the “attractions” failed to bring in many visitors, despite being free.

One centre in Copenhagen received less than 9,000 visitors in 2023, at a cost to the taxpayer of €46 (£40) per person, according to Politico.

About 32,000 people visited the Europa Experience in the well-heeled Madeleine district of Paris, costing €92 a head. Just 33,000 have gone to the Helsinki museum.