Opposing sixteen European Union nations dispute the Commission's proposed revision of the Union's budget.
The ongoing discussions surrounding the EU's budget after 2027 are centred around maintaining the cohesion policy, a crucial element for regional development. This policy aims to ensure both competitiveness and convergence across EU regions, bridging the socio-economic gap between the richest and poorest European regions.
The European Commission and related EU institutions have emphasised the importance of the cohesion policy, recognising the need to balance investments that boost economic dynamism while supporting underdeveloped regions to catch up with their more prosperous counterparts. The policy is debated in the context of supporting EU-wide competitiveness by fostering growth in less advanced regions, which is essential for the overall economic balance and sustainability of the EU single market.
However, the Commission's plans to create a single funding pot for each EU country and link the receipt of funds to the fulfilment of policy objectives are causing concern. A non-paper, endorsed by 14 member states, including Poland, Bulgaria, and Hungary, calls for a stand-alone cohesion policy in the next EU long-term budget and advocates for a distinct budget and region-based allocation methodology.
The proposal for the next EU budget appears to be under development, with a strong emphasis on maintaining cohesion policy to ensure both competitiveness and convergence. There is potential for the policy to be integrated more closely with climate and industrial policies, though no final agreement or detailed plan is yet publicly confirmed.
The Socialists, the second-largest group in the European Parliament, have expressed opposition to the 'one national plan per member state' approach and the 'payments against reforms' rule. They have called on the Commission chief to propose a larger and more ambitious long-term budget, exceeding the current 1% of the EU's GDP.
Poland, another key player in this debate, insists that the combined share of the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and cohesion policy in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) should not be less than it is currently. They argue that competitiveness and cohesion are the two sides of the same coin and that one of the priorities of the next MFF should be increasing the importance of economic, social, and territorial cohesion within the EU and striving for convergence.
Both Poland and the centre-left Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group in the European Parliament have raised concerns about the Commission's intention to merge dozens of individual funding streams into a single cash pot per member state. The potential centralisation of the management and access to EU money would give greater power to national governments and Brussels, while proving detrimental to regions and other departments within the European Commission.
The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, is expected to present the budget proposal for the next long-term financial period (2028-2034) on July 16. The future of the cohesion policy and the shape of the next EU budget are eagerly anticipated, as they will significantly impact the economic and social landscape of the European Union.
- The debates about the EU's future budget emphasize the need for a stand-alone cohesion policy, with concern raised over the Commission's plan to create a single funding pot for each EU country and link funds to policy objectives.
- Both Poland and the Socialists & Democrats in the European Parliament have expressed opposition to the Commission's proposal of merging multiple funding streams, fearing the potential centralization of EU funding management could prove detrimental to regions and other departments within the European Commission.
