The Council of the European Union and the European Parliament have reached agreement on the EU’s budget for next year, LETA learned at the Latvian Ministry of Finance.
A representative of the ministry said that timely approval of the EU budget ensures the necessary flow of financing to various programmes without any delays.
The new budget contains commitment appropriations of EUR 199.4 billion and payment appropriations of EUR 155.2 billion, which corresponds to 1.08% and 0.84% of the EU’s gross national income respectively.
The agreed budget provides for humanitarian aid in crisis areas, support for external and internal migration, efforts to strengthen the EU’s borders, as well as funding for innovation programmes.
There will be additional funding for Europe’s military mobility so that the continent’s transport infrastructure is adapted to the relocation of military units. This, said the Finance Ministry, is essential for Latvia’s needs.
Next year’s budget is more flexible in terms of the availability of cohesion policy funds in the wake of natural disasters.
Parties agreed to swiftly assess the situation with payments, the evolution of demands, and the modalities which exist in relation to interest payments on EU loans. The spending levels in the budget have sufficient “headroom” or funding for unforeseen needs. This will allow the EU to respond to crisis situations and other unforeseen events during the coming year.
Source: BNS
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