Irlanda propone recortar un 8% el presupuesto de la UE para 2028-2034

European countries north of the EU have deemed the 8% cut to the European budget for the period 2028-2034 proposed this Saturday by the rotating presidency, which is currently held by Ireland, insufficient. They have called for a more ambitious proposal. The rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, currently held by Ireland, proposed on Saturday to cut the EU's budget by 8% for the period 2028-2034, with competitiveness and security being the main areas affected.

The revised version of the accounts sets the budget at 1.62 trillion, compared to the European Commission's proposal of 1.76 trillion in constant 2025 prices, meaning a total cut of 141.056 billion euros. In current prices, the proposal covers a budget of 1.82 trillion, compared to the 1.98 trillion proposed by Brussels, implying a volume cut of nearly 160 billion euros.

The revised proposal only slightly modifies the allocation for new national plans, through which member states will absorb EU aid from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and Cohesion Policy, which already represent cuts of roughly 10%. The main target of the reduction has been the European Competitiveness Fund, of which the Horizon Europe program - the EU's innovation and research program - and the Clean Transition program are part, with funding for both falling by almost 15 billion (140 billion) and 3 billion respectively.

Other cuts include the Resilience and Security (defense) category, with 15 billion fewer euros, Connecting Europe - the transportation network program - with a reduction of over 10 billion, and Erasmus+, with a cut of slightly less than 2 billion. In the foreign action area, Ireland proposes cuts to contributions to Sub-Saharan Africa (15 billion) and the Americas and Caribbean (less than 2 billion), as well as to the Middle East (over 5 billion).

The Irish proposal reduces common accounts as requested by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and the first ministers of the Netherlands, Austria, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, but concentrates cuts on areas these partners want to prioritize, such as security and defense, competitiveness, innovation, and combating irregular migration, compared to traditional agricultural funds.

In a letter, the frugal group warned that they would not endorse a new EU budget unless the current proposal was cut by several hundred million euros. On the other side, the group of cohesion friends, comprising 17 member states including Spain, Italy, Portugal, or Greece, responded in a separate letter that the next EU budget must preserve agriculture and cohesion as central priorities.

The Irish presidency will present these accounts first to EU ministers of European affairs next Tuesday, where they will have an initial approach, and then at the summit of Heads of State and Government on October 15 and 16, in an attempt to bridge the large gap that still separates them with a view to reaching an agreement in December.