Strasbourg, 14/01/2004 (Agence Europe) - During a press conference to the backdrop of the plenary of the European Parliament on Tuesday, Hans-Gert Pöttering, the German president of the EPP-ED group at the European Parliament, stated that it was unwise to attempt to restrict European Union spending to 1% of GDP at the moment the Union was increasing by a further ten members. His remarks were later backed up by his counterpart in the Greens/EFA group, Daniel Cohn Bendit, who had sharply attacked the six Heads of State and Government in a letter for their attempts to limit European Union financial resources to 1% (these leaders include the Head of their own country Chancellor Schröder: Editor's note). Highlighting the fact that German unification had cost EU 800 bn, the leader of the CDU asserted that they could not pretend that enlargement was going to cost nothing. Pöttering considers that Europe needs a budget that is equal to 1.5% for the next 7 to 10 years if it is going to be able to assume its internal responsibilities and have a genuine role on the international scene.
Daniel Cohn-Bendit also rejected the argument of under-use of loans, as argued by the Six, to justify their demand: according to the German Green, this should not lead to a limitation of loans but rather to the reform of the European administration. He was of the opinion that the lack of loans for the Erasmus facility, the need to support the cinema and European media was needed if they really wanted to defend cultural difference or increase European action funds to respond to international crises, rather than searching for the money in other budgetary lines, which is currently the case.
Daniel- Cohn-Bendit and Monica Frassoni, co-presidents of the Greens/EFA group have written personally to the signatories of the letter - Jacques Chirac, Gerard Schröder, Tony Blair, Jan Balkenende, Göran Persson and Wolgang Schüssel, indicating that their request was made at an "an unfortunate time" coloured by the failure of the IGC and "in which national interests seem to prevail over the common goals of are-united Europe…you state your commitment to the principle of European solidarity and your desire to continue the Union's cohesion policy. You also commit yourself to the decisions taken a the European Council as regards the ceilings for agricultural expenditure until the year 2013". The two MEPs warn, "We fear that this gives the wrong signal to the peoples of Europe, especially in the new Member States. Your create the image of a European Union that costs, whereas in reality all Member States have benefited greatly from the European Union, both politically and in economic term"s. The German MEP and Italian parliamentarian admit that in a period of economic slowdown, governments seek to "explore all options for possible savings" but they advise that, "Instead of waiting for money to flow back to the Member States, we would rather like to encourage your to invest in the targets you have set yourselves in Lisbon. Investment in knowledge for future generations could easily be doubled and would have an immediate result". The two Green MEPs also request that, "the future financial framework should leave a sufficient margin for new initiatives that are developed only over time and provide enough flexibility to deal with possible future international crises". In conclusion they hope that the Commission communication on financial perspectives (expected for 25 January), "will provide a solid basis for discussions between the two arms of the budgetary authority, Council and Parliament" and reaffirm their support for the powers of the parliament. They conclude that the parliament has proved to be a "reliable and constructive partner in decision-making".