What changed

PA_NonLegBud

9.2.2026

OPINION

Mr Johan Van Overtveldt

The Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality calls on the Committee on Budgets, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following into its motion for a resolution:

Chair

A. whereas gender equality is a core EU value and the EU is committed to promoting gender equality and gender mainstreaming in all its actions in accordance with Article 8 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU);

Committee on Budgets

B. whereas Parliament has repeatedly called for the promotion and implementation of gender mainstreaming, gender budgeting and gender impact assessments across all EU policy areas;

BRUSSELS

1. Calls for the effective and systematic implementation of gender budgeting at all stages of the budgetary process and across all programmes; stresses that all EU spending must support gender equality and that a gender perspective must be consistently integrated into the preparation, monitoring and evaluation of expenditure; calls, therefore, for a higher number of interventions resulting in a score 1 or 2;

Subject: Opinion on the Guidelines for Budget – Section III (2025/2246(BUI))

2. Acknowledges the crucial role of data, research and expertise in preparing, monitoring and evaluating the Union budget in line with gender equality objectives; highlights the key role of the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) and reiterates the need for it to have adequate funding and staffing to meet increasing demands for technical assistance; stresses the need to increase its staffing levels, including by hiring at least five temporary agents;

Dear Mr Chair,

3. Recognises the increased funding for the Daphne programme and underlines the importance of allocating at least 5 % of the total EU budget to policies aimed at combating violence against women;

Under the procedure referred to above, the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (AGRI) has been invited to submit an opinion to your committee. By a written consultation concluded on 18 December 2025, the AGRI coordinators decided that the Committee would issue its opinion in the form of a letter. It considered the matter at its meeting of 24 February 2026 and adopted the opinion at that meeting. It therefore asks the Committee on Budgets, as the responsible committee, to take the following points into account when preparing the motion for a resolution.

4. Calls for dedicated budgetary allocations under the EU4Health programme to support research into gender specific health conditions, including those pertaining sexual and reproductive health.

The AGRI Committee:

1. Stresses that the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) remains a core Union policy essential for food security, viable farm incomes, especially in a context of geopolitical uncertainty, climate change risks, and market volatility.

2. Strongly opposes any reduction of CAP commitment and payment appropriations in the 2027 budget and stresses that CAP budget lines must not be used as an adjustment variable for other priorities.

3. Emphasises that budgetary continuity and predictability are essential for farmers’ planning and investment decisions and must be safeguarded; stresses that the EU budget for 2027 will act as a transition to the 2028-2034 MFF and must therefore ensure continuity in CAP payments for commitments undertaken under the current MFF.

4. Calls for a sufficiently funded agricultural reserve and effective risk-management instruments to address market, climate and phytosanitary crises; stresses that sufficient and adequate funding should be made available to efficiently tackle animal diseases and ensure rapid prevention and response, in particular through the coordination of the purchase and supply of veterinary vaccines at EU level and by fostering the development of such vaccines in the Union.

5. Emphasises the need to invest in sustainable water management, including water storage, irrigation modernisation and soil resilience, particularly in light of changing climate patterns, increasing extreme weather events and the rising drought risk.

6. Highlights the importance of adequate funding for the promotion of EU agricultural products, including the Buy European Food campaign, to strengthen competitiveness and expand both internal and external markets.

7. Calls for increased investment in agricultural research and innovation, notably under Horizon Europe, including Cluster 6 thereof; underlines the role of digitalisation in agriculture in improving productivity and sustainability and stresses the need for accompanying measures to support its uptake, including digital skills training for farmers and their organisations.

8. Stresses the need for continued, strengthened and predictable support for generational renewal, to attract young farmers, including for women farmers, with improved access to land and finance, and investments in rural infrastructure and services, to keep rural areas attractive, viable and resilient and to prevent depopulation.

9. Notes with concern that inflation and rising input costs continue to erode the real value of CAP support and calls for budgetary solutions to prevent further losses in farmers’ purchasing power.

10. Calls for adequate resources to mitigate potential negative impacts of trade agreements on agriculture and to ensure a level playing field for Union farmers.

11. Highlights the need for better preparation for Union enlargement to ensure an orderly transition, stability in the EU agricultural sector and fair prices for consumers and producers; recalls that past enlargements have reshaped the EU budget and driven lasting reforms; calls on the Commission to assess sector-specific impacts during the pre-accession phase, in particular through an impact assessment of Ukraine’s integration into the CAP.

Yours sincerely,

Veronika Vrecionová Wouter Beke

ANNEX: DECLARATION OF INPUT

The rapporteur for opinion and the Chair declare under their exclusive responsibility that they did not include in the opinion input from interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register, or from representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies, to be listed in this Annex pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure.