{
  "id": 13411778,
  "title": "Ringen um Billionensumme: EU-Haushalt: Vorsitz geht auf Konfrontationskurs zu Merz",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/10/ringen-um-billionensumme-eu-haushalt-vorsitz-geht-auf",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-10T12:36:13.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Handelsblatt",
    "slug": "handelsblatt",
    "url": "https://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/international/ringen-um-billionensumme-eu-haushalt-vorsitz-geht-auf-konfrontationskurs-zu-merz/100261212.html"
  },
  "original_language": "de",
  "account": "The current EU presidency is clashing with Germany and other significant net contributors in the ongoing fight over the next long-term EU budget. An Irish EU presidency proposal cuts the upcoming long-term budget by about 159 billion euros, compared to the original EU Commission proposal, bringing the total to approximately 1.826 trillion euros. Germany and other major net contributor countries, including the Netherlands, Sweden, and Austria, had demanded a budget reduction of several hundred billion euros. This group of countries contributes more to the EU budget than they receive in return. The distribution of cuts also does not align with the German government's under Chancellor Friedrich Merz's (CDU) expectations. Particularly, the agricultural and cohesion policies would remain largely untouched, while other major budget items, such as competitiveness, research, defense, and foreign and development policy, would see substantial cuts. The Irish proposal suggests that the cohesion policy, aimed at reducing economic and social disparities between European regions, would continue to benefit poorer EU countries. The additional funds for this sector and agencies like Frontex and Europol would also experience significant reductions. Agreement by the end of the year is doubtful, as Austria's EU minister, Claudia Bauer, stated that the new budget proposal is still far from gaining approval in Vienna. Austria, along with the other eight net contributors, already contributes over 60% of the EU budget. Sweden's EU minister, Jessica Rosencrantz, called the proposal inadequate and demanded a substantial decrease in the overall volume. A European diplomat criticized the Irish proposal, stating it is a disappointment and not even close to a potential agreement basis. By favoring political priorities of the 20th century, the proposal fails to prepare the EU for the 21st century. \"We urgently need more financial realism and less financial fantasy,\" said the Austrian diplomat. The Irish EU minister, Thomas Byrne, disagreed with cutting further in agriculture and cohesion policy, which some net contributors also demanded. \"Not everyone will get everything they wanted, but we believe that something will remain for all member states,\" he said. A showdown at the upcoming EU summit in Brussels on Thursday and Friday is expected, with the outgoing EU president, António Costa, likely taking over the negotiation leadership. The Irish proposal leaves central issues of financing open, including potential new EU own resources such as contributions from large companies, revenues from the emissions trading system and CO2 border adjustment, as well as taxes on tobacco and electronic waste. However, no agreement on these instruments has been reached yet. The majority of the long-term EU budget will continue to be funded by member state contributions - each EU country pays a certain percentage of its gross national income (GNI). Germany, being the largest economy in the EU, contributes the most, last year paying over a fifth of the total EU contributions, amounting to around 34.1 billion euros. At the same time, it benefits greatly from the EU single market. Germany is the biggest net contributor in 2025, with the EU Commission reporting a total of around 34.1 billion euros in EU contributions, of which 29.6 billion euros are national contributions and about 4.4 billion euros in customs duties collected in Germany, which are considered traditional EU own resources. With these customs duties included, Germany's net EU contribution stands at around 21.8 billion euros. The Irish proposal's proposed total budget of 1.826 trillion euros, considering inflation during the seven-year financial period, would amount to approximately 1.622 trillion euros in 2028-2034. The EU Commission had proposed 1.763 trillion euros in inflation-adjusted terms, meaning the Irish presidency cuts the volume real by about 141 billion euros or eight percent.",
  "summary": "Mit wie viel Geld soll der nächste langfristige EU-Haushalt ausgestattet werden? Über diese Frage wird derzeit intensiv gerungen. Nun liegt ein Vorschlag vor, der Kanzler Merz nicht gefallen dürfte.",
  "key_points": [
    "Irish EU presidency proposes 159 billion euro cut to upcoming long-term budget",
    "Germany and major net contributors demand substantial budget reductions",
    "Irish proposal leaves central financing issues open for future agreement"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}