European Budgets 2014 to 2020

Part of Internet Regulation (Material Inciting Gang Violence) – in the House of Commons at 5:11 pm on 8 November 2011.

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Photo of David Nuttall David Nuttall Conservative, Bury North 5:11, 8 November 2011

As ever, it is a great pleasure to follow my hon. Friend Andrew Percy, who speaks straightforward common sense. I also rise to support the motion. We have had a good debate, and I want to make some brief points.

First, we must not lose sight of the fact that, under the proposed new EU budget, there remain very few net contributors to the budget. Perhaps if more EU nations contributed to it, the EU might become a more prudent organisation. Secondly, I agree with the wording of the motion that states that the Commission’s proposal for an increase is

“unacceptable, unrealistic, too large and incompatible with the tough decisions being taken in the UK”.

Those words would be a good candidate for the winner of the understatement of the year competition.

The Government state, in paragraph 97 of their explanatory memorandum on the EU budget, that their provisional estimate of the UK contribution to the next EU financial framework is 11.5%, after the UK rebate has been taken into account. The Commission’s proposed ceiling for EU payments within the financial framework over the period from 2014 to 2020 is €972 billion, so a UK contribution of 11.5% on that level of EU payments would see this country paying in almost €112 billion, which is about £96 billion at an exchange rate of £1 to €1.6.