At its April plenary session, the EESC adopted the opinion The road to the next Multiannual Financial Framework in which that would provide the EU with the financial resources needed to achieve its political priorities.

In the opinion,drawn up by Elena-Alexandra Calistru, Konstantinos Diamantouros and Stefano Palmieri, the Committee stresses that the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) must be strong and ambitious, and must be seen as an investment in delivering EU priorities and European public goods.

More specifically, the EESC is in favour of a significant, real-term increase in the MFF in order to address the huge challenges facing the EU. This means that the mechanism for adjusting the MFF in line with inflation, which has traditionally capped the annual increase in contributions to the budget at 2%, should change in order to preserve the real spending power of the MFF.

Speaking during the plenary debate, EESC president Oliver Röpke said that ‘In times of transition and uncertainty, Europe needs a future-proof budget that empowers us to act, protect and transform. We need an MFF that is an investment tool for European public goods. We need to mobilise investment to foster our green, blue, digital and social transitions’.

He continued by pointing out that ‘Simplification and accessibility of EU funding is crucial. The next MFF must streamline funding instruments, harmonise rules and reduce bureaucracy to deliver real results on the ground’. (mp)