A provisional version of the European Commission’s communication on the post-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), published by Agence Europe, summarises in twenty-six pages what the priorities of the next EU budget will be in the long term, how the Commission intends to finance them and what principles will run through the new architecture of the budget.
The working document confirms what Agence Europe has been saying over the last few days based on several leaks of provisional documents relating to: - national and regional plans (see EUROPE 13680/1); - the Competitiveness Fund (see EUROPE 13677/1); - new own resources (see EUROPE 13680/2); - the General Regulation on the post-2027 MFF (see EUROPE 13679/1); - the performance framework for the budget (see EUROPE 13679/2).
This budget will be guided by a number of cross-cutting principles: flexibility (so that funds can be redeployed or mobilised in emergencies), greater simplicity (to make funds more accessible to beneficiaries), transparency (a Commission website will list all the final beneficiaries of the funds) and respect for the Rule of law (the ‘Rule of law conditionality’ will apply to all the funds relating to national and regional plans).
The next MFF will have to work to build a European Defence Union, but also to strengthen the European Single Market and Europe “in an uncertain world”. With this budget, the EU will invest in education, democracy and European values, as well as in protecting citizens and strengthening preparedness and resilience.
Financing architecture. The provisional version of the communication gives an idea of how these priorities will be funded.
European defence will be built with the help of the Competitiveness Fund (resilience, defence and space), national and regional partnership plans (possibility of using national envelopes for the development of the local defence industry and military mobility) and the Connecting Europe Facility (military mobility).
The Single Market will be strengthened through the Single Market Programme (internal market, consumer protection, competition policy, financial services and international standards, statistics, customs, tax cooperation, combating fraud) and the Connecting Europe Facility (transport and military mobility, energy).
The European Commission plans to step up investment in education in the post-2027 MFF, and to continue promoting cultural diversity via Erasmus, the Agora programme (Media+, Creative Europe) and the ‘Justice’ programme. These priorities will be anchored in the principle of respect for the rights and values that define the EU.
The protection of citizens and the Union’s preparedness strategy will be financed by the Civil Protection Mechanism, national and regional plans (investment in disaster prevention), the Competitiveness Fund (strategic autonomy, defence, industrial capacity) and the ‘Global Europe’ Fund (support for third countries; humanitarian aid, macro-financial assistance).
“Increased use of financial instruments”. To finance all its political priorities and any possible crises, the European Commission wants to strengthen and expand its ‘toolbox’. This will involve greater use of financial instruments and budgetary guarantees, which should have a leverage effect. Subprime loans, bonds and equity investments will receive greater support.
The Competitiveness Fund will provide a “single budgetary guarantee for internal policies”, and loans will be available to Member States under national and regional partnership plans, and to third countries under the ‘Global Europe’ Fund.
Budgetary resources provided in the form of loans to Member States “to respond to the consequences of severe crises, severe hardship or serious threats” will be backed by EU borrowing on the markets “only for the duration of the next financial framework”. Their activation will be decided by the EU Council, with the agreement of the European Parliament.
To see the document: https://aeur.eu/f/hvy (Original version in French by Florent Servia)