Gifts to bullies, not to research
A surprisingly quick deal on the EU’s seven year budget, seems to have ‘rewarded’ the UK for their threat to leave the European Union and gave Denmark a new rebate, while The Netherlands and Sweden keep their ‘membership discount’. The much discussed and criticized agricultural budget even saw a small budget increase.
As the total figure of the budget was to be capped at € 960 billion – the first budget cut in Europe’s history – the cuts must fall somewhere else.
One EU diplomat complained to The Guardian “that Van Rompuy had adopted crude tactics in which he bought off individual member states with ‘gifts’ while cutting EU-wide infrastructure projects such as the Connecting Europe initiative. Growth has been the victim of the bazaar.”
No broadband left for Neelie Kroes
‘Sub-heading 1a’, the part of the budget dealing with ‘Competitiveness for growth and jobs’ saw the total of commitments fall back from €152 billion to €125 billion. One of the main cuts concerns Europe’s ‘Connecting Europe Facility’, Commissioner Neelie Kroes’ broadband strategy aimed at boosting the single market.
The draft conclusions can be found here.
