European Union leaders arrived in Brussels on Thursday to face fresh clashes over the bloc’s 2014-2020 budget at a two-day summit, with the only certainty being that proposals for several years will be cut back.
European Union leaders face tough late-night negotiations on the bloc's 2014-20 budget Thursday under the watchful eye of a newly assertive European parliament unhappy at the prospect of major spending cuts.
In November, leaders tried and failed to narrow sharp differences, and while a compromise is expected to emerge this time there is no certainty other than that the budget talks will be long and difficult.
An agreement hinges on finding a balance between British and German-led calls for EU cuts to match the austerity of national governments, and French and Italian-led demands to ring-fence money for investment in areas that can generate jobs and growth.
“There is a general sense of pessimism,” FRANCE 24 correspondent in Brussels Maeve McMahon reported on Thursday morning. “There are a lot of groups who will be severely affected by the decisions of taken over the next few days.”
The differences are serious enough but the situation has also been clouded by British premier David Cameron's promise of a referendum on EU membership if he can renegotiate London's ties with Brussels.
The proponents of a trimmer EU budget argue that cuts should be applied across the board and reach right down into wages and tax-free benefits for about 35,000 EU civil servants – some of whom have begun strike action against possible redundancies.
Read more: EU leaders to face off over budget cuts at crucial talks - EUROPEAN UNION - FRANCE 24
No comments:
Post a Comment