Romanian MEP appointed chief negotiator of the European Parliament for the 2024 EU budget

MEP Siegfried Mureşan (PNL), the vice-president of the EPP group in the European Parliament, was appointed on Tuesday as the general rapporteur (chief negotiator) of the Parliament for the European Union budget for 2024, following a decision of the Committee on Budgets (BUDG), it is stated in a release from his press office.

“As the chief negotiator of the Parliament, I will have two major objectives: firstly, to adopt a strong budget that covers all financing needs for 2024, and secondly, to adopt it on time. I will work with all the pro-European forces in the EP to ensure broad support among MEPs for the future European budget”, said the European deputy Siegfried Mureşan, according to the quoted statement.

“I want to make sure that in the EU budget for 2024 we will allocate sufficient funds to reimburse the expenses of absorbing European funds. This is a very important thing especially for Romania. I expect that next year we will accelerate in our country the investments from the European funds related to the current multi-year financial exercise. That’s why it’s important to secure the money needed to pay the bills for these investments”, added the Liberal MEP.

He stated that among his priorities will be the continuation of support for Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. “We can ensure peace and security in the European Union only if we quickly and adequately support the two countries to face threats of any kind from the Russian Federation. I will negotiate for support for Ukraine and Moldova to come from clear, predictable sources, without wasting time from month to month negotiating allocations and without affecting the traditional priorities of the European Union, such as cohesion, economic development, supporting entrepreneurs and farmers “, said Mureşan.

He also stated that, as negotiator for the EU budget for 2024, he will ensure that “we have sufficient funds available within the Common Agricultural Policy, including the Emergency Fund for the Agricultural Sector, to quickly support farmers in Romania and The European Union in the face of current crises“.

The European deputy Siegfried Mureşan is designated for the second time the chief negotiator of the EP for the EU budget, being the only Romanian MEP to hold this position twice. Siegfried Mureşan also negotiated the EU budget for 2018.

The European Commission is to submit a budget proposal for 2024 at the beginning of June. On the basis of this budget proposal, negotiations between the negotiating teams of the EP and the EU Council follow. The objective is to reach an agreement so that the budget is adopted before the end of 2023.