Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/1999-10-26-Speech-2-055"
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"en.19991026.2.2-055"2
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"Mr President, naturally enough the rapporteur and some of the previous speakers have already alluded obviously to what for me is one of the crucial political elements – if not
crucial element – of this draft budget. But, as rapporteur for the interinstitutional agreement and the Financial Perspective, I feel compelled to emphasise it.
Few people interpreted Berlin as a success: the European Council confused austerity with miserliness. I will not repeat my criticisms: I refer you to the Minutes of the plenary sittings.
Between 25 March and 6 May, we held the last round of negotiations between Parliament and the Council. During that long and intense month of bargaining, Parliament made an effort to persuade the Council that there was more to the Union than the EAGGF and the Structural Funds, that the remaining 20% of the budget was also used to serve the Union’s objectives and that, often, it affects issues which were politically very sensitive. The Ministers implicitly recognised the obstinacy of their leaders, but did not want to find fault with them barely five weeks later. For this reason they only accepted the slightest and most miserly alterations to Category 3 (Internal Policies) and Category 5 (Administrative Expenditure).
The insuperable stumbling block was Category 4 (External Action) and not even the war in the Balkans persuaded them to accept the higher figure. One of the Ministers who negotiated and who is now a Commissioner came to recognise that it was possible that the Financial Perspective would have to be revised before it entered into force, but that we would have to wait until the Commission provided an estimate of costs. Once again, the Council confused the multiannual budgetary framework, that is to say the Financial Perspective, with the budget itself: a self-interested short-sightedness which hindered suitable and appropriate political decision-making and which led to a bungled handling of the budget.
What is the situation? We are beginning to see the cost of the needs of Kosovo, there has been an earthquake in Turkey and a political disaster in East Timor, not to mention the need to pay for the fisheries agreement with Morocco, which the government of the principal country involved must have forgotten in the negotiations in Berlin.
The Council intends to resolve the matter by cutting a good proportion of the aid to Russia and the Mediterranean area with the rest coming from proportionate reductions in the other external programmes. Very cunning. The Financial Perspective has also failed to take into account the question of the accession of Cyprus and Malta. I believe that we should bear in mind that the interinstitutional agreement includes a mechanism for revision of the Financial Perspective for these cases, and that it is there to be used when necessary.
There are those who keep an empty bottle in the fridge in case their visitors do not wish to drink anything. If the Commission now presents a proposal for revision of the Financial Perspective, think of that bottle, Madam Minister."@en1
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