Brussels, 20/07/2012 (Agence Europe) - The General Affairs Council in Brussels on Tuesday 24 July will discuss the European Union's Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2014-2020, the Cypriot Presidency's work programme, and following up on the recent European Summit.
The European Commission will unveil draft proposals for the Multiannual Financial Framework for 2014-2020, taking account of Croatia's joining the EU (scheduled for the summer of 2013), the Commission's Spring Economic Forecasts and new regional and national economic data. The Cypriot Presidency will brief the ministers on how it will be organising the MFF negotiations over the next six months.
On 19 July 2012, the Cyprus Presidency concluded a first round of bilateral meetings with each of the member states on the EU budget for 2014-2020 and will brief the General Affairs Council on the talks, also attended by the president of the European Council, representatives of the Council's secretariat, the European Parliament and the European Commission. The Cypriot Deputy Minister for EU Affairs, Andreas D. Mavroyiannis, highlighted the willingness of everyone involved to cooperate and reiterated the Cypriot Presidency's target of concluding the negotiations on the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) by the end of the year. “We feel 'wiser' as to what the member states' concerns and priorities are and this will help us find a consensual way forward in the negotiations”, said Mavroyiannis. The outcome of the meetings will form the basis of discussions at the upcoming Informal Meeting of Ministers and Deputy Ministers for EU Affairs in Nicosia on 30 August. In the autumn, the Cypriot Presidency will complete the negotiating box submitted by the Danish Presidency at the end of last month, working with the competent institutions with a view to reaching agreement by the end of 2012.
In a public meeting, the Cypriot Presidency will unveil its work programme (for July to December this year) and the Council will examine follow-up to the 28-29 June European Summit (Growth and Jobs Pact, future of Economic and Monetary Union, country-specific recommendations on budget and economic policies and the 2014-2020 Multiannual Financial Framework).
The Council is expected to welcome an agreement on a common declaration and joint approach on decentralised EU agencies reached by the European Council, European Commission and Council of Ministers in the middle of last month. The joint approach aims to provide the EP, Commission and Council of Ministers with non-binding guidelines for any decisions about the decentralised agencies in the years to come, particularly their role, structure, governance, how they operate, their work programmes, resources, scrutiny, transparency and relations with stakeholders. (LC/transl.fl)