Poland is set to benefit most from the EU's €2 trillion budget for 2028-2034, according to its finance minister, despite protests from farmers against reforms to the Common Agricultural Policy.
ADVERTISEMENT
Poland will remain the biggest beneficiary of the EU's proposed €2 trillion budget for 2028-2034, officials said Wednesday after the European Commission unveiled its draft multiannual financial framework.
Polish Finance Minister Andrzej Domański called Poland "the biggest beneficiary of the biggest ever EU budget" with further funds available for security, cohesion, agriculture and innovation.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the proposal as "a budget for a new era that matches Europe's ambitions," designed to "strengthen our independence and respond to the challenges facing the union."
The budget allocates €300 billion for agriculture and €218 billion for less developed regions, but faces opposition from farmers concerned about Common Agricultural Policy reforms.
European farmers protest reforms
Agricultural workers from across the EU gathered outside the European Commission building in Brussels on Wednesday as von der Leyen unveiled the long-term EU budget plan.
Many protested against what they saw as damaging reforms to the EU's historical Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and a plan to combine the existing separate funds into a single national one, all part of the new budget proposal.
For Poland, this may not pose an issue. "Poland, despite the fact that it has been growing very fast in recent years - and such are the growth forecasts for the coming years - will remain the biggest beneficiary of these national and regional partnership programmes," European Commissioner for Budget Piotr Serafin said.
Furthermore, the European Commission has also proposed introducing new EU taxes alongside member state contributions as sources of funding. "We see the world we live in today. Flexibility must be increased," Serafin said.
MEPs wary of Commission proposal
Meanwhile, EU lawmakers have expressed dissatisfaction with the budget presentation on Thursday, with Committee on Budgets chair Johan Van Overtveldt criticising the lack of detailed information provided to lawmakers.
"Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is giving a press conference, and she is giving to the press more information than you to us," MEP Overtveldt told Serafin during a committee briefing.
Other MEPs bemoaned what they called the lack of figures, official documents, and explanatory materials from the Commission ahead of budget discussions.
For the multiannual budget to take effect, a majority of MEPs must approve the final text, followed by the unanimous consent of all EU member states.