Negotiators for the European Union’s three institutions finally agreed Wednesday on a preliminary deal to salvage next year’s budget — but nongovernmental organizations warned that the danger of a financial crisis has not yet been averted, as development funds are still at risk of drying out by mid-2015 and debts could continue to build up.
Representatives of the European Council, the commission and the parliament reached the initial consensus that spending in 2015 will be set at 141.2 billion euros ($175.9 billion) and commitments at 145.3 billion euros. Parliament negotiated additional funding for research and education, as well as an extra 32 million euros for foreign policy actions, including 10 million euros for humanitarian actions.
The parties also agreed on an extra 4 billion euros to help the EU cope with its growing pile of unpaid bills incurred in 2014. Because of the increasing gap between payments and commitments, the EU’s debts have increased from 5 billion euros in 2010 to more than 23.4 billion euros at the beginning of 2014. According to some estimates, this figure could soon could balloon to up to 28 billion euros.
About the author
Diederik Kramers @DiederikKramers
Diederik Kramers is a freelance correspondent in Brussels covering EU and NATO affairs. A former spokesperson and communications officer for UNICEF and UNHCR, he previously worked as foreign desk and Eastern Europe editor for the Dutch press agency ANP and as editor-in-chief of the Dutch quarterly Ukraine Magazine.
