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Guidelines for the 2025 Budget - Section III

TA-9-2024-0157 · P9_TA(2024)0157 · PE758.108

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Parliament's resolution sets out its guidelines for the 2025 EU budget, Section III (Commission). It calls for a reliable, investment-oriented budget that leaves no one behind in the green and digital transitions and boosts EU competitiveness. It regrets the late MFF revision and tight margins, and asks the Commission to provide timely information on NGEU borrowing costs and RRF disbursements. It demands full application of the rule of law conditionality regulation, new own resources, and an additional special instrument above the MFF ceilings for crises. It calls for funding for social cohesion, research and innovation, health, education, culture, civil protection, agriculture, fisheries, and the green and digital transitions. It asks for support for Ukraine, the Western Balkans, Moldova and Georgia, reinforced humanitarian aid, and stricter conditions on payments to third countries. It urges faster implementation of cohesion and recovery funds, simplification, and adequate resources for oversight bodies and agencies.

Key points

  1. Parliament insists on a reliable, robust, flexible and investment-oriented EU budget for 2025 that responds to people's needs and boosts competitiveness.
  2. It highlights the difficult circumstances of the 2025 procedure, including high international tensions and the election year, and calls on all actors to take the calendar constraints into account.
  3. It deeply regrets that the Council did not reach an agreement on the MFF revision before the end of 2023 and notes the very tight margins under the MFF ceilings.
  4. It considers the MFF revision outcome below its initial aspirations and stresses that the revision is essential for medium-term support to Ukraine and for safeguarding programmes and flexibility.
  5. It recalls the Joint Declaration that NGEU financing costs should not reduce programmes and insists on reliable Commission information on NGEU borrowing costs and RRF disbursements.
  6. It calls on the Council and Commission to apply the rule of law conditionality regulation in full and to ensure suspended EU funds reach citizens and stakeholders.
  7. It underlines that EURI borrowing costs are a legal obligation and reiterates that they should be placed fully in a special instrument above the MFF ceilings.
  8. It notes modest economic growth and above-2% inflation, and recalls its position that rebates should be abolished and gross reductions to GNI-based contributions subject to a fixed deflator of up to 2% per year.
  9. It deplores the lack of progress on own resources reform and urges the Commission to identify fresh, new and preferably genuine own resources beyond the IIA.
  10. It regrets that budgetary scarcities limit the capacity to respond to unforeseen events and calls for an additional special instrument above the MFF ceilings.
  11. It calls for funding for social cohesion, research and innovation, health, education, culture, civil protection, agriculture, fisheries, and the green and digital transitions.
  12. It asks for support for Ukraine, the Western Balkans, Moldova and Georgia, reinforced humanitarian aid, and stricter conditions on payments to third countries.

Who is affected

  • EU citizens, especially vulnerable groups, benefit from funding for social cohesion, health, education and culture.
  • Small and medium-sized enterprises, start-ups, farmers and researchers receive support for competitiveness, innovation and sustainability.
  • Member states must comply with rule of law requirements to access EU funds and speed up implementation of programmes.
  • Ukraine, Western Balkan countries, Moldova and Georgia receive support for recovery, reforms and EU accession paths.
  • Third countries face stricter conditions and possible suspension of payments if they fail to meet set conditions.

Figures and deadlines

  • 0.9 % in 2024 and 1.7 % in 2025: forecast economic growth.
  • 3.0 % in 2024 and 2.5 % in 2025: expected inflation.
  • 2 %: inflation target used as automatic deflator for the MFF.
  • 0.46 % in the draft budget 2024: call rate for the GNI-based own resource.
  • 2 % per year: fixed deflator for gross reductions to GNI-based national contributions until rebates are abolished.
  • 3% of GDP: long-standing target for EU research & development investment intensity.
  • 10 %: target for biodiversity-related spending in 2026 and 2027.
  • 2050 at the latest: aim for the Union to be climate-neutral.

Legal basis: Article 314 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and Article 106a of the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community.