The European Parliament on Wednesday voted to approve the proposal for the European Union’s budget for next year put forward by Cypriot MEP Michalis Hadjipantela, of Disy, and his Latvian co-rapporteur Nils Usakovs.
Their joint proposal passed by 400 votes to 189, with 84 abstentions. Of the Cypriots, Hadjipantela voted in favour of his own proposal, as did fellow Disy MEP Loucas Fourlas, Diko’s Costas Mavrides, and Direct Democracy Cyprus leader Fidias Panayiotou.
Akel’s Giorgos Georgiou voted against the proposal, while Elam’s Geadis Geadi abstained.
The proposed budget foresees that the EU will make €194 billion worth of commitments and €203.3bn worth of actual payments over the course of the year, with Hadjipantela and Usakovs having reversed all the cuts which had been made to it by the Council of the EU when it agreed its own position in July.
Additionally, the committee’s position includes more spending not only than the Council’s, but also than the European Commission’s position, which had been published in June, and from which the Council had made its cuts.
This is because the committee had voted to approve €1.17bn of extra spending next year compared to the commission’s position, including €260.5 million for the Connecting Europe facility, the EU’s funding instrument for infrastructure investment, and the instrument through which the EU offered grants for the Great Sea Interconnector.
Other increases include an extra €85m for the European agriculture guarantee fund, through which the EU pays farmers directly, and a €20m increase for support for young farmers.
Additionally, increases in funding amounting to €140m have been granted for the EU’s neighbourhood policy, through which the EU offers funding and partnerships for countries in eastern Europe and north Africa.
‘Efficiency cannot simply mean making cuts’
Hadjipantela on Tuesday said of his plans that “at a time when the European Union faces growing security challenges, we must ensure that our institutions possess the necessary means to carry out their mission effectively and independently.”
“Let me be clear: budgetary discipline is non-negotiable. European taxpayers expect us to manage public funds responsibly and to remain efficient, while avoiding unnecessary expenditure,” he said.
On this front, he said that “all institutions must identify opportunities for savings and improve the way they operate”, and that the European Parliament itself “is called upon to continue improving how it manages and spends its budget”.
However, he stressed, “efficiency cannot simply mean making cuts without regard for the responsibilities which our institutions are required to fulfil.”
“We must avoid a situation where cuts create operational problems or, worse still, lead to higher costs in the future. The goal is to strike the right balance,” he said.
He later said that the EU’s various institutions “have already made significant efforts to improve their efficiency and save resources”, and that “these efforts must continue, and should be accompanied by a realistic assessment of the tasks and obligations incumbent upon each institution.”
With the parliament now having approved Hadjipantela and Usakovs’ proposal, the “conciliation committee” of the parliament and the Council will convene on November 3 with the aim of reaching a compromise between the two institutions by November 16.
Should a provisional agreement be reached by that date, the joint text will then be voted on both at the Council and at the parliament for final approval.