This week, the European Union’s member states begin negotiations among themselves on the EU’s recovery plan, which aims to boost economic recovery from the coronavirus crisis. The plan is built on the Commission’s revised proposal for the EU’s long-term budget for 2021-2027, together with a temporary €750 billion “Next Generation EU” recovery fund, from which member states would receive a total of €500 billion in direct support and €250 billion in loans. JEF Finland believes that the upcoming budget and recovery fund must be used to build a carbon-neutral European Union that looks to the future.
“These negotiations are vital for the EU’s future, since they will decide how the EU responds to the challenges posed by the coronavirus, climate change and the global economic crisis. We must look boldly far into the future and invest in things that build confidence in tomorrow,” comments JEF Finland President Iiris Asunmaa.
The Commission has proposed forward-looking emphases for the new budget, which is excellent. €94.4 billion is proposed for the Horizon Europe research programme, €8.2 billion for the Digital Europe programme, and €27.9 billion for the Erasmus+ programme, which focuses on young people, education, mobility and sport. Nearly €400 billion has been earmarked for cohesion policy, so cohesion funding, too, must be directed towards sustainable growth and innovation rather than infrastructure construction. Agriculture’s share in the Commission’s proposal remains disproportionately large.
“It is especially important that future investments are held onto in the long-term budget. It is also essential to develop the EU’s system of own resources. It’s clear that the Union needs more revenue — that is, taxes and fees that can also help move things in a low-emission, ecologically sustainable direction. When it comes to the recovery fund’s financing, we must make sure that the work carried out through it promotes the transition towards a carbon-neutral Europe. There can be no compromise on climate targets under the guise of the coronavirus!” Asunmaa states.
In Finland, the EU debate has for a long time been conducted in a highly technical way, behind closed doors. A black-and-white yes-or-no debate about the EU does not move the conversation forward constructively, and that’s why we need more concrete openings about what kind of European Union we are aiming for. It is problematic for the realisation of democracy that Finland is not having a genuine public debate about which direction we want to take the European Union.
“JEF Finland believes that Finland must promote solidarity among member states in the negotiations concerning the recovery plan, since we can only rise from this crisis together. Finland should position itself as a bold developer of the European Union, instead of trying to act as a brake on progress,” Asunmaa concludes.
For further information:
Iiris Asunmaa
President
JEF Finland
050 918 7390