Permanente Vertegenwoordigers eens over uitgangspunten EU-budget 2014 (en)

COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

Brussels, 18 July 2013 (OR. en) PRESSE 336

Council agrees position on 2014 EU budget

The Permanent Representatives Committee today endorsed the Council's position on the 2014 EU draft budget ( + ADD 1 + ADD 2 + ADD 3 + ADD 4 + ADD 5). This is the first annual budget relating to the period of the new multiannual financial framework (MFF) 2014-2020 i on which a political agreement was reached by the Council and the European Parliament at the end of June

It herewith confirmed the agreement reached in the Council's budget committee on the basis of a compromise text of the Lithuanian presidency i

The Council's position, which still needs to be formally adopted by the Council (at the beginning of September), thoroughly respects the expenditure ceilings of the new MFF while keeping appropriate margins in order to meet possible unforeseen expenditure needs

The Council's position amounts to

• • 

  EUR 142.23 billion in commitments² (EUR 141.77 billion if specific instruments outside the multiannual financial framework are excluded; this would leave a margin of EUR 769.25 million);

• • 

  EUR 135.00 billion in payments¹ (EUR 134.80 billion if specific instruments outside the multiannual financial framework are excluded; this would leave a margin of EUR 1.06 billion)

The Permanent Representatives Committee is composed of the ambassadors of the 28 EU member states. Its role is to prepare decisions of the Council

Commitments are legal promises to spend money for activities whose implementation might extend over several financial years

Compared to the 2013 EU budget as amended by amending budget no 1, commitments decrease by EUR 9.33 billion or 6.15% and payments increase by EUR 1.79 billion or 1.35%

Compared to the amounts proposed by the Commission, the Council's position provides for a reduction by EUR 240.68 million in commitments and EUR 1.06 billion in payments

New programmes and actions, such as the youth employment initiative, are exempted from reductions which have been targeted on the basis of past and current budget implementation and realistic absorption capacities

Once it has been formally adopted, the Council's position will serve as a mandate to the Lithuanian presidency to negotiate next year's EU budget with the European Parliament, which is expected to adopt its amendments to the Council's position in the week starting on 21 October. If the Council's and the Parliament's positions diverge, a three-week conciliation period will start on 24 October (until 13 November included) (see flow-chart in the annex).

A summary of the draft Council's position is set out in the tables below:

This corresponds to 1.00% of the EU's gross national income.

Multiannual Financial Framework

AB: Amending budget DB: Draft budget

Outside MFF

AB: Amending budget DB: Draft budget

Multiannual Financial Framework + outside MFF

AB: Amending budget DB: Draft budget

Budget procedure Lisbon Treaty (Art. 314)

Commission presents Council (CHS) -and European Parliament (EP) draft budget until 1 September of year n-1

CMS adopts its position by qualified majority (q.m.) on the draft budget and forwards it to the EP until 10ctober n-1

EP adopts amendments by a majority of its members

EP approves the position of the CNS within 42 days or does not take a decision

Presidents of the CNS and of the EP convene a Conciliation Committee [CC], composed of 27 members of the CNS and 27 oftheEP

Budget finally adopted

CNS approves by q. m. all the amendments of the EP within 10 days

CC tries to reach agreement on a joint text within 21 days, by q. m. of the CNS and a majority of the representatives of the EP

If the CC agrees on a joint text the CNS and the EP have each a period of 14 days to approve it

If the CC does not reach agreement on a joint text, the Commission shalll submit a new draft budget

EPand CNS approve the joint text or fail to take a decision, or one institution approves the text while the other does not take a decision

Budget finally adopted

EP (by a majority of its members) and CNS reject the text, or one institution rejects it while the other does not take a decision

EP (by a majority of its members) rejects the text, while the CNS approves it

Commission shall submit a new draft budget

EP approves the text, while the CNS rejects it

EPmay (by a majority of its members and three-fifths of the votes cast) decide to confirm all or some of its amendments. Where an EP amendment is not confirmed the position agreed in the CC is retained

CC= Conciliation Committee

CNS = Council

EP = European Parliament

q.m. = qualified majority