30 November 2017
ECR budgets spokesman Bernd Koelmel has criticised the 2018 EU budget as a missed opportunity to prepare for the inevitable cuts that will come following Brexit. Koemel was speaking after the parliament ratified the agreement they reached with the council on €160bn of commitments for next year.
ECR budgets spokesman Bernd Koelmel has criticised the 2018 EU budget as a missed opportunity to prepare for the inevitable cuts that will come following Brexit. Koemel was speaking after the parliament ratified the agreement they reached with the council on €160bn of commitments for next year.
“The EU continues to spend vast resources on outdated policies that do not prepare us for the challenges of the future, particularly given the inevitable loss of UK contributions. It’s welcome that we’ve increased spending on research and innovation and also our efforts to combat Russian propaganda and interference in our elections but we could have achieved so much more.”
Regarding Turkey, Koemel continued:
“As long as Turkey behaves like lawless state and imprisons journalists without charge, the EU needs to send out stronger signals on the rule of law and democracy. I would have preferred the funding to be removed entirely.