More EU money for research, health, border protection, disaster response and agriculture

Ahead of negotiations to reach a final deal on the 2025 EU budget, the EPP Group is insisting that vital funding programmes be restored and strengthened. "EU Member States want to slash €1.52 billion from the Union's budget for 2025. This is unacceptable. The EU budget is our most powerful investment tool. We need a strong budget to boost competitiveness, economic growth, job creation and improve the lives of people and communities across the Union," says Andrzej Halicki MEP, Vice-Chair of the EPP Group, following the plenary votes on the European Parliament's negotiating mandate on next year's EU budget.

The EPP Group's priorities won parliamentary support, such as an increase of €242 million for the EU's flagship research programme, Horizon Europe. Priority areas such as EU4Health (+€50 million) will receive extra funding, as will the Civil Protection Mechanism (+€42 million), which enables the EU to respond to natural disasters. Educational opportunities for young people will be improved through Erasmus (+€70 million). There's also a boost for the agricultural sector with an increase of €96 million for the Common Agricultural Policy, including €40 million for young farmers and €25 million for the promotion of agricultural products.

The EU must protect its external borders and manage migration more effectively. Today, the European Parliament voted to increase funding for the Border Management and Visa Instrument (+€35 million) and the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (+€25 million).

"Adequate resources are also required to tackle rising security threats such as the spread of disinformation, terrorism, radicalisation, violent extremism and serious crime. Our unwavering support for Ukraine is reflected in our position on next year’s budget. Candidate countries for EU membership, like Moldova, are assured of our continued support. We also want the EU to increase humanitarian aid by €120 million in 2025, in the context of global conflicts and crises," Halicki underlines.

"Unfortunately, today, the Parliament could not agree on a final political resolution to accompany these important financial amendments. However, I look forward to the forthcoming negotiations to achieve a final deal on the 2025 Budget before the end of this year," Halicki adds.