On Wednesday 11 November, following agreement on the EU’s Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2021-2027 and the Recovery Plan, Margarida Marques MEP (S&D, Portugal), co-rapporteur on the MFF, told EUROPE that the European Parliament fought to increase funding for a number of EU programmes by €15 billion in order to “maintain those programmes that produce added value for the EU and safeguard the future EU budget”. She also referred to the “step forward” on own resources and said she believes that we must not give in to Hungarian blackmail on the ‘Rule of law’ mechanism (interview by Lionel Changeur).
Agence Europe - As you have said, this is the first time the European Parliament has managed to secure an increase in spending agreed by the European Council. Do you think some of the programmes were at risk and how did you choose between the 15 priorities originally?
Margarida Marques - The European Council’s agreement of 21 July on the MFF and the Recovery Plan showed that it was the EU programmes (Horizon Europe, Erasmus+, etc.) that would lose out.
Member States’ financial allocations for cohesion and agriculture have been safeguarded, and so has the budget for the Economic Recovery Plan.
From the outset, our aim was to increase the allocations for the EU programmes. Why? So as to maintain these programmes that produce European added value and safeguard the future EU budget. It would have been difficult to get a budget increase for the next programming period.
An agreement had to be reached between the European Parliament political groups to give priority to health (budget tripled), research, Erasmus+, culture, humanitarian aid, development and border protection.
Eleven billion euros will come from competition fines that have been paid. How will that money be put together?
This creative proposal was tabled by the European Commission because it was impossible to change the European Council conclusions. The European Parliament requested that the amounts be immediately allocated to the programmes. The European Parliament is really pleased with this total increase of €16 billion for the programmes.
Safeguards have been introduced to ensure that the debt cost of the Recovery Plan does not affect EU programmes. Are they adequate?
We were unable to obtain the Council of the EU’s consent to remove the €12.9 billion of interest payable under the Recovery Plan from the MFF ceilings (which would have freed up this sum for the programmes: editor’s note).
Fortunately, protection mechanisms have been agreed for the future in order to avoid a reduction in funding for the EU programmes. The financial markets are doing well at the moment, but we don’t know what will happen in the future.
With regard to own resources, the Council of the EU believes that the agreement is not binding, because of the powers of national parliaments. Does the European Parliament see things differently?
The Interinstitutional Agreement on budgetary discipline, which is binding, will stipulate that new own resources are needed to pay the Recovery Plan debt. There will be a different financing structure for the European budget, which represents a big step forward.
There will be an obligation to introduce new own resources, but each new revenue, such as a digital tax or a financial transaction tax, will require the approval of the national parliaments. They obviously have a say with regard to revenues. The European Commission has a timetable for making proposals regarding these new own resources.
What do you think of countries like Hungary that are taking the MFF and the Recovery Plan hostage because of a text they do not like on conditionality in the Rule of law?
This ‘Rule of law’ mechanism will be on the table at the Council of the EU meeting next Monday. Hungary is exerting pressure to ensure the text is not approved. The compromise will have to be approved by qualified majority, and I believe that there will be a sufficient majority in the Council of the EU. Once this mechanism is adopted, Hungary will have to accept European law.
On the matter of the Hungarian threat not to approve the MFF and the Recovery Plan, I think Hungary will understand that it cannot question the budget and the European response to the crisis.
In addition, this mechanism helps protect the final beneficiaries (NGOs, universities) and helps avoid tax evasion and avoidance. The aim is therefore to protect EU citizens’ money.
When do you think the Recovery Plan will be implemented and do you already see the need for a new one because of the second wave of Covid-19?
There will be delays to the original schedule. The Recovery Plan should be implemented some time next spring, with retrospective effect from 1 January 2021. This will depend on the time needed for the national parliaments to ratify the own resources decision.
The adequacy of the current Recovery Plan will have to be assessed at a later date.
Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank (ECB), has said that a new Recovery Plan may be needed. In any case, it’s too early to put the issue on the agenda.