The European Commission published its proposals for the 2021-2027 MFF on 2 May 2018. The Commission proposal envisaged a budget of 1.114% of EU 27 GNI, equivalent to €1.134 trillion over the seven-year period. The Commission proposal was the starting point for discussions that have been ongoing in the Council and European Parliament since then. The European Parliament is required to give its consent to the overall final MFF agreement.
I am aware that the European Parliament has published a number of Resolutions on the MFF proposals since early 2018, most recently its Resolution of 10 October, which reiterated its position that the next MFF should be 1.3% of EU 27 GNI.
At the October European Council, Heads of State and Government (HoSG) exchanged views on the MFF based on a Finnish Presidency discussion paper which proposed an MFF in the range of 1.03% - 1.08% of EU 27 GNI (including the European Development Fund). HoSG called on the Presidency to submit a Negotiating Box with figures ahead of the European Council on December 2019.
In the course of the discussions to date, the Government has said that Ireland is open to contributing more to the EU budget, provided that European Added Value is ensured and that our core interests - particularly CAP - are met. We will continue to seek to ensure that Ireland’s priorities are protected. The final overall level we can support will depend on the proposed balance between the main policy areas.
Ireland is likely to see significant growth in our contributions as part to the next MFF, largely as a result of our continued economic growth. The exact level of contributions will depend on the final MFF negotiations, in particular the overall level of expenditure and the Own Resources to be applied.
