The draft multiannual budget of the European Union means that some EU countries will have to pay billions of euros more annually, while many other countries will receive significantly more subsidies from Brussels. This is evident, according to the British business newspaper Financial Times, from German calculations regarding the EU’s multiannual estimates.
The European Commission has not yet released amounts because the multiannual budget is still under negotiation and discussion. The size of the EU budgets is decided not only by the finance ministers or heads of government, but also by the European Commission and the European Parliament. Moreover, national parliaments have a say over the annual contributions to the EU. It has already become clear that there is significant disagreement behind the scenes.
From the German calculations, it is clear that large financial shifts will be necessary to pay for all the wishes and demands for new policies. Major disagreements have arisen about how much the budget should increase, or whether expenditures should be limited to the current levels of recent years. Not only must the loss of the British contribution after Brexit be compensated for by the remaining 27 EU countries, but also new climate policy (‘green deal’) and other initiatives from the new Von der Leyen Commission.
Additionally, the European Commission has apparently proposed abolishing the rebates that several EU countries have secured in recent years. As a result, according to the German calculations, the Netherlands’ annual net contribution would increase from 5 billion euros to 7.5 billion euros, after deducting received subsidies. Germany, as the largest net payer, would have to more than double its contribution from 15 to 33 billion euros. France currently pays 7.5 billion euros net to the EU and would only increase to 10 billion euros. This is mainly because France receives substantial agricultural subsidies.
The shifts in annual contributions are partly a consequence of a European Commission proposal to increase the annual EU budget to 1.1 percent of the total income earned within the European Union. The European Parliament wants the budget to increase even more.
The Dutch government finds an increase in the Netherlands’ gross contribution to 13 billion euros unacceptable, partly because a significant part of that increase is caused by the proposed abolition of the current 1.5 billion euro rebate for the Netherlands. Brussels wants to eliminate those rebates for net payers on their gross contributions.
Sweden, Austria, and Denmark would also pay significantly more in these calculations if it were up to the European Commission. Together with Germany and the Netherlands, they form a group aiming to prevent these increases and limit spending to a maximum of 1 percent of the income of all EU countries through Brussels. But the other 22 EU countries mostly welcome the increase, because it benefits them. For example, Poland currently receives a net 10 billion euros in EU subsidies, which would increase to 12 billion euros by 2027.