The Committee of the Regions is preparing to adopt an opinion that is particularly critical of the European Commission’s proposals for the upcoming multiannual financial framework (MFF), going by a provisional version of the opinion prepared by Nikola Dobroslavić (EPP, Hungary), seen by this newsletter on Monday 10 September.
The rapporteur starts by regretting that the Commission did not propose an increase in the spending caps of 1.3% of GNI. He is opposed to the 10% budget cuts in the Cohesion Policy, particularly those for the Cohesion Fund (around 45%). Likewise, the rapporteur criticises the cuts in the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy (-11% for the European Agriculture Guarantee Fund; -28% for the European Fund for Rural Development; - 13% for the European Fund for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries). He also regrets that the European Social Fund plus (ESF+) has not had its budget increased in real terms. Likewise for the Connecting Europe Mechanism.
Dobroslavić regrets the increase in national co-financing rates and the proposal to return to the n+2 rule, in other words whereby the funds allocated in each programme should be spent two years after the end of the budget cycle, rather than three years as at present.
He is concerned about the overall structure of the Commission’s proposal, which improves neither the coherence nor the synergies among programmes and different budget lines. Another source of concern is that the regional elected official fears the slippage towards programmes under direct management.
In general, the draft opinion deplores the lack of transparency in the figures unveiled by the European Commission, the absence of a long-term strategic framework like the Europe Strategy 2020. He feels the Commission’s proposals are not ambitious enough when it comes to new resources and expressed concern about the lack of clarity over the timeline and the future agreement on Brexit.
The opinion will be put to the vote at the Committee of the Regions plenary on 8-10 October 2018.
The European Commission’s budget proposals (see EUROPE 12013) for the upcoming budget cycle are giving rise to a raft of concerns, be it among the regions (see EUROPE 12031), MEPs (see EUROPE 12037) or member states (see EUROPE 12007). (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)