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MEPs also want to prevent that rising repayment costs reduce the funding of important educational programs like Erasmus+. During and after the coronavirus crisis, a recovery plan was launched for all EU countries, also called the Recovery Plan for Europe (EURI). It now appears that the repayment costs of the plan for 2025 are twice as high as expected. According to the Parliament, this must not lead to lower funding for essential programs.
In preparation for the trilateral negotiations with the EU countries and the European Commission, the EU politicians set the draft budget level at nearly 201 billion euros. This is at least 1.24 billion euros more than proposed by the European Commission last June. Additionally, the MEPs reversed the proposed cuts by the EU countries.
In the field of security, there are increases in budgets for military mobility and disaster response. The Parliament, partly thanks to amendments by D66 member Raquel Garcia Hermida van der Walle in the Committee on Internal Affairs, rejected the cuts to Frontex proposed by member states.
"It’s time to open our eyes to the harsh reality," said Dutch MEP Anouk van Brug (VVD). "Our security is under pressure and economic prosperity is no longer a given. This calls for a budget that is ready for the future." According to her, "we can no longer spend two-thirds of our budget on agriculture and cohesion. We must firmly invest in defense, get a grip on migration, and stimulate innovation. These are the real challenges of today."
After adopting the nature restoration law, the Parliament now also wants more money for nature and climate action. D66 delegation leader Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy considers this a good development: "The political wind has started to blow against everything green. Often without further explanation: just against it. Then it is good that we can still muster majorities that do recognize the disastrous problems coming our way."
In the coming weeks, delegations from the parliament and EU member states will negotiate to reach a common position. Discussions will also cover the multiannual plan for the years ahead, as well as important advisory reports from former Italian Prime Minister Draghi and recommendations from the Strategic Dialogue of German agricultural advisor Strohschneider.
Draghi advocates a thorough modernization and streamlining of the European budget, with the EU focusing much more on strengthening trade, economy, and business to become a "more competitive player on the world stage," alongside major powers like the United States and China. Strohschneider’s report advocates replacing per-hectare agricultural subsidies with targeted income support for farmers who grow more nature-friendly and sustainable food. |
