09/02/2004 (Agence Europe) - this is not the time to do Europe on the cheap, nor is it time for short termism, retreat or hesitation…I am the first to defend value for taxpayers' money. But Europe cannot turn in on itself, cannot let the economic cycle dictate its strategic course", insisted president Cox on the eve of the presentation of the European Commission's proposals on financial perspectives for 2007-2013 (EUROPE 7 February p 7). A minority of Commissioners would prefer that the enlarged EU's budget to remained under 1.24% of Gross National Income, this is the case for Commissioners Schreyer and Verheugen (who recently repeated, according to DPA, that financial perspectives should "reflect the principle of consolidation of public finances". Discussion at the Commission has not just focused on the spending ceiling but also on priorities for the future and the Commissioner for "cohesion" (Barnier, Diamantopoulou, Fischler) have had to, over recent months, fight for demonstrating "added value" of the solidarity policy just when the Union is preparing for an unprecedented enlargement.