The budget summit of the leaders of the 27 EU members in Brussels on a new long-term budget ended abruptly on Friday without an agreement being reached. That became clear around half past seven in the evening.
The European administrators spent two days negotiating a new budget for the EU – without the United Kingdom – for the period from 2021 to 2027. The Netherlands, among others, wants to keep the budget at 1 percent of European gross national income, other countries want it budget is increased.
The German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced on Friday evening that it is not yet known when further negotiations will take place. French President Macron said it had become clear that the EU did not need the UK to disagree.
The European budget, officially called the Multiannual Financial Framework, sets limits for European Union spending, both in total and for specific areas. In other words: how much can the EU spend in the next seven years and on what?
The Netherlands is one of the most economical countries
The proposal that was now on the table came from Charles Michel, President of the European Council. He bet on a budget of 1.074 percent of the EU’s gross national income. In the current budget that is 1.03 percent.
There is a difference of opinion between the member states about the size of the budget and what exactly the money is spent on. The Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark and Austria want to keep their hands on the bill. Countries that receive a lot of European subsidies such as France and Portugal, and countries such as Romania, Hungary and Poland, who receive a lot of money because they are poorer countries, want to increase the budget.
Opponents of a larger EU budget also want European funds to be spent differently. The budget must be more modern. For example, less money should go to ‘old-fashioned’ subsidy sources such as agriculture and pots for poorer countries (the Cohesion Fund), but more to research & development, migration and combating climate change.
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