Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-12-16-Speech-2-133"
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"en.20031216.4.2-133"2
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"Mr President, right at the start I wish to congratulate the budget rapporteurs Mrs Gill and Mr Mulder and thank them for their excellent work. I would likewise like to thank Mrs Schreyer and Italy, as the country holding the presidency, for their good levels of cooperation. I would particularly like to express my appreciation to the Chairman of the Committee, Terence Wynn, for his role as leader and arbitrator and the constructive cooperation he offered the political group coordinators.
Next year’s budget was drawn up to apply to 25 Member States, as was the wish of my group. This week we are adopting a budget for 15 Member States, but the figures for an enlarged European Union have also been agreed in terms of policy, and they will be adopted in next year’s Amending Budget. This will strengthen the reliability of the budget as a basis for the EU’s operations for the year.
There is budgetary discipline. The payment appropriations for Fifteen Member States are down by 2.9% on this year and total payments for the enlarged EU are only 2.3% higher than this year’s budget. Accordingly, the desire expressed just before the Intergovernmental Conference held by the Member States to restrict Parliament’s current budgetary authority is incomprehensible.
Regarding the details, it might be mentioned that the Group of the European Liberal, Democrat and Reform Party supported the general rapporteur’s areas of priority, which were comprehensively adopted – my warmest congratulations. My group also supported the Commission’s proposal to increase staff numbers sufficiently as a result of enlargement. Despite the Council’s objections this position was adopted.
The most problematic issue was once again Heading 4, ‘external policies’. My group was in favour of participating in the reconstruction of Iraq. During the conciliation procedure Parliament succeeded in squeezing EUR 95 million out of the flexibility instrument. It was possible to finance the rest by reallocating appropriations within the heading.
We are pleased that our group’s other priorities within the context of this heading were also taken into consideration, such as the Northern Dimension, action to strengthen human rights and democracy, and the fight against diseases connected with poverty, such as malaria and AIDS.
Our group has always taken a sceptical view of cash earmarked for various special organisations – the A-30 budget lines. There has always been the view that there is no great justification for them and they have been likened to gifts of cash for Christmas. Now they are to be phased out. The EU’s approach to granting finance is gradually changing to one based on application and is becoming transparent, by virtue of the Financial Regulation. In this connection it is worth mentioning that Parliament succeeded in protecting the funding of Info-Points and rural Carrefours for next year, when their status is to be clarified. But for Parliament’s intervention, things would have been a shambles.
Next year’s draft budget at the end of the day reflects the sense of responsibility that Parliament feels in its role as budgetary authority."@en1
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