20/04/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 20 April, the European Commission suggested a considerable rise in the EU's budget for 2012 by 3.7% in commitment appropriations and by 4.9% in payment appropriations (€6.2 billion more than the 2011 budget). This suggestion has already been condemned by the United Kingdom and the Netherlands at a time when austerity budgets are de rigueur throughout Europe. EU Budget Commissioner Janusz Lewandowsk explained: “The main reason for the increase is that we must pay the bills coming from projects from across Europe. Such projects that benefit local communities and businesses would probably never have been launched back in 2007 without the commitment of EU funding; to stop funding them is unthinkable. Think for instance of the electric interconnection between the United Kingdom and Ireland. The overall EU contribution to this project is over €100 million! Its aim is to give Irish and British citizens greater security of power supply. In 2012, the bills the EU will have to pay for this project will amount to some €24million, more than twice as much as in 2011.” Another example given was the Berlin ring road, which will receive €20 million in EU funding.
The UK, the Netherlands, France and Finland asked last December for a freezing of the EU budget until 2020 because of the austerity measures being applied by governments across Europe. These five countries combined contribute 51% of the EU budget. The commissioner said he expected tough negotiations with EU member states, but did not expect the talks to be as bitter as the negotiations over the 2011 budget.
The European Commission suggests commitment appropriations should be set at €147.4 billion in total for the EU budget for 2012, a 3.7% increase on the current budget. It suggests payment appropriations of €132.7bn (up 4.9% on 2011), which is 1.01% of the EU's gross national income (GNI).
In its drafting of next year's budget, the Commission sought to identify inefficient programmes and measures, cutting commitment appropriations by more than €3 billion from some programmes. The Development Cooperation Instrument has been reduced by €70.7 million as a result of its performance assessment. The Industrialised Countries Instrument has seen a reduction of €14.5 million due to a high level of de-commitments in 2007 and low performance and delay in adoption of the new legal base. GALILEO funding has been reduced by €24.9 million.
Bills must be paid. The Commission must honour its legal commitments. EU-funded programmes launched in 2007 are now running at full speed. This means that in 2012, there will be more bills to pay to reimburse regional authorities or small businesses that have invested in those programmes. In particular, increased payment levels for the research programmes (up 13.3% to €7.6 billion) and for the structural and cohesion funds (up 8.4 % to €45.1 billion) aim at maximising the EU budget contribution to economic growth and cohesion. The proposed increase for next year's budget amounts to the bare minimum required to honour the Commission's legal commitments. “Any decrease below this figure would require member states and the European Parliament to break the legal commitments that have been made on existing contracts”, explains the Commission in a press release.
EUROPE 2020 strategy. The Commission suggests a 5.1% increase in 2012 in commitment appropriations for the EUROPE 2020 strategy, and it suggests that 46.1% of the EU's budget should go to sustainable growth (competitiveness and cohesion). Citizens are the focus of the EU's policy and their security is a top EU priority. The draft budget includes a 6.8% increase in the field of freedom, security and justice, with measures focused on citizen interests and needs. Moreover, under EUROPE 2020, measures for young people would have a budget of €1.9bn, 15.0% up on 2011. Likewise, climate change-related measures are key, with a 6.1% increase in 2012 to a total of €8.1 billion. To boost priority areas under the Lisbon Treaty, a 13.2% rise in spending on space and 11% on the CFSP are planned.
The Commission plans a certain sum to be earmarked for foreign policy because the Commission has not yet unveiled its updated strategy (due early next month) for the EU's neighbourhood policy.
Administrative spending. Only 6% of the EU's budget goes to the running of the EU institutions. The Commission has demonstrated great restraint, calling for a freeze on its administrative spending in 2012, in other words a zero increase on the 2011 budget. It has achieved this by slashing real estate, IT and communications, research, publications, travel, meetings and conference spending. In addition, for the third year in a row, the Commission is not requesting any increases in staffing (new posts). In June 2011, Lewandowski will be unveiling draft changes to European civil servants' terms and conditions to claw back on perks. (L.C./transl.fl)