Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-11-23-Speech-2-420"
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"en.20101123.37.2-420"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, by fully exercising their right of initiative, the Members of the Commission have just decided in a meeting held here in Strasbourg that the Commission will be presenting a new draft budget in the next few days, on 1 December at the latest. We hope that Parliament and the Council will approve it in the coming fortnight.
The recent review of the Union’s budget, as presented by the Commission, has clearly shown the importance we give to optimising the added value of EU expenditure. We cannot waste the opportunity that we are being given to ensure that the Union’s budget really makes a difference by promoting our ambitions and implementing the objectives of the treaty. The Commission will draft a methodology aimed at demonstrating the added value of the budget, and we are also prepared to set about quantifying the costs of a ‘non-Europe’. We must state very clearly that the advantages of Union membership cannot just come down to numbers and figures. While we are focusing on the costs of the budget, we must also focus more closely on those who really benefit from the Union’s policies and not only on the annual budgetary costs.
Ladies and gentlemen, these are clear commitments that I am making before you today, on behalf of the Commission. I will confirm them in writing to the Presidents of Parliament and of the Council. If it helps to obtain this agreement, we are also prepared to reiterate them in the form of declarations to be annexed to an agreement between the Council and Parliament.
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I know that many people, on all sides, have felt during this debate that the next multiannual financial framework will be a crucial test for Europe, and I share their point of view. It will be a test of our ability to bring about real change for millions of Europeans, to use this powerful tool to stimulate our ambition for a Europe focused on growth and sustainable jobs for the future, a strong Europe on the international stage, and a Europe based on the values to which we subscribe.
It will also be a test of our ability to draft an intelligent budget, focused on the areas in which resources can best be deployed and culminating in tangible results, and not on a misdirected budget, because preference was given to political compromise rather than to the quality and efficiency of our spending.
However, as the last few weeks have shown, it may be, above all, a test of our system of governance, of our ability not only to present sound arguments but also to recognise that the strength of our Union and of the Treaty of Lisbon lies in finding the best solutions to achieve our shared objectives. The proposals that the Commission will be presenting next June require major efforts to achieve the necessary consensus. The Commission will be open to any ideas on how to structure the debate around our proposals on the solid foundations of the Treaty of Lisbon.
Ladies and gentlemen, the issues at stake in the discussions currently being held are huge. They deserve our full attention. I am convinced that all the parties will be determined to reach an agreement. We have the broad outline of a solution based on the possibilities being offered in the current conditions which, I would stress, are very, very sensitive conditions that require all of us – Parliament, Council and the Commission – to be more responsible than we already are.
We must not forget that we are discussing the budget and not a secondary issue. We are discussing one of the main tools that the Union has at its disposal. This tool, far from being a luxury that we can do without during difficult periods, is absolutely essential if we wish to restore growth in Europe, create employment and generate prosperity.
The European budget is different from national budgets. I would emphasise this point because people are sometimes very quick to make comparisons. For a start, the European budget has no deficit: it is always balanced. It is different from the Member States’ budgets as it is primarily an investment budget that contributes to growth, and we know how much we need this investment right now.
This tool is therefore too important to be jeopardised. Europe needs the European Union to have a budget. It is not a budget for Brussels, but a budget for the European citizens. It is a budget for unemployed people who are currently looking for a new job. It is a budget for the regions of Europe. It is a budget for innovation in Europe. We must therefore make it clear that it is not a budget for bureaucracy and bureaucrats. It is a budget for the people of Europe.
We must prevent the disruption that further disputes would cause and any uncertainties linked to provisional twelfths. They are not simply uncertainties; they are real losses for real citizens. If provisional twelfths alone were applied, our citizens would not understand how issues, even very important ones, could hinder a budget that has a direct impact on the livelihoods and prospects of citizens throughout the Union.
This draft will take up all the points that we agreed upon before the conciliation that ended last week. In fact, we were very close to an agreement, and I wish to thank everyone who has worked in this spirit, a true European spirit of compromise. It is a shame that in the end, an agreement has not been possible. However, I am keen to underline the role of Commissioner Lewandowski, who has contributed all his energy and expertise, the role of many people in this House, but also the very constructive role of the Belgian Presidency, which I thank for having done and which is continuing to do everything possible to reach an agreement. I believe that the draft that we are going to present deserves your support and that of the Council, and that it will enable us to come up with a budget before the end of this year, so that the Union may have a budget by 1 January 2011. Furthermore, I believe that it would be very difficult to explain to Europe’s citizens that in a crisis such as the one we are currently going through in Europe, we are unable to reach an agreement on the budget, which really is a symbol of Europe’s ability to respond to challenges, challenges such as the one that Ireland or the European economy is having to face up to at the moment.
This is why I am confident that, with an additional commitment – and I appeal to the European spirit, especially of those who failed to show it last time – it will be possible to have a 2011 budget and to lay the foundations for a truly serious discussion on the prospects for financing the European Union in the future.
Our proposal will take full account of the proposal made by Parliament to increase the commitments under the headings ‘Competitiveness for growth and employment’ and ‘External relations’, through the use of the flexibility instrument. It will fix the level of payments with an increase of 2.91%. I am convinced that this proposal will enable us to strike a balance that can be supported.
It goes without saying that this agreement must be clear on matters relating to ‘future financing’. We must show that all the parties involved clearly understand the implications of the treaty and that close cooperation between the institutions at the highest political level is a natural consequence of our mutual commitment to adopt the best financial framework for the future. The Commission will take all the initiatives required for an ongoing and fruitful dialogue at all levels, including amongst the Presidents of the institutions, in order to draw up a common plan that will allow for the necessary decisions to be taken. May I remind you of President Buzek’s important speech to the European Council on 27 October, which served to underline the enhanced role of the European Parliament, including in budgetary matters, that is laid down in the Treaty of Lisbon, a role that I have also had the opportunity to draw attention to, by supporting your President’s speech before the 27 Heads of State or Government.
I would like to be very clear on the Commission’s position regarding a number of key points.
First of all, as emerged from the recent review of the budget, we will use our right of initiative to present formal proposals on own resources before the end of June. Clearly, pursuant to the treaty, the European Parliament will have to be consulted on these proposals, which is in line with the expectations arising from the interinstitutional agreement concluded in 2006.
Secondly, we will argue the need to take full account of the changes envisaged by the Treaty of Lisbon when we present proposals, both for future budgets and for the multiannual financial framework as a whole. The budget must reflect the Union’s revised priorities arising from the treaty.
I must also make it clear that, as the review of the budget has shown, the flexibility in our budgets means that the resources that we have are concentrated on the Union’s political objectives. Therefore, flexibility must be clearly maintained to allow for adoption by a qualified majority of revisions of less than 0.03% of gross national income.
To this end, I sincerely hope that we will receive positive news very shortly from the Council, so that we have the right political conditions to ensure the success of the 2011 budget adoption procedure."@en1
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