Member States should use €6.4 billion budgetary reflow for refugee aid
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-€6.4 billion from 2016 set to be returned to the member states
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-MEPs worried that €4.9 billion, earmarked mainly for cohesion funds, were not spent
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-Revenue loss of €1.5 billion, due to depreciation of the British Pound against the Euro
MEPs approved on Tuesday a Commission proposal to amend the 2017 EU budget in order to include a positive balance from 2016.
MEPs are deeply concerned about inaccurate forecasts and delays in the management of funds at national level, which resulted in “the significant under-implementation of €4.889 billion in 2016”.
They repeat that the member states should use the money left over from 2016 “to honour their pledges in relation to the refugee crisis and to match the Union contribution to Union trust funds and to the new European Fund for Sustainable Development.”
Loss of revenue because of falling British pound
MEPs also draw attention to the negative impact of the depreciation of the British Pound against the Euro, “which is the main cause of [a] shortfall in revenues of €1.511 billion.”
They note “that this shortfall of revenues is due to the unilateral British decision to leave the Union, but the correction has to be borne by the Union as a whole”, and insist “that these costs should be taken into consideration when negotiating the settlement of financial obligations between the UK and the Union.”
The resolution by rapporteur Jens Geier (S&D, DE) was approved by 556 votes to 79, with 61 abstentions.
Quick facts
The Draft Amending Budget (DAB) No 2/2017 is intended to enter the surplus resulting from the implementation of the 2016 budget into the 2017 budget.
The €6.4 billion budget reflow from 2016 must be returned to member states through a decrease in their contributions. The 2015 budgetary surplus was considerably lower (€1.3 billion).
Who's involved
Amending budget 2017: surplus of the financial year 2016
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