Brussels, June 30, 2016- Alfa MEP and budgetary spokesman of the European Conservatives and Reformists Group, Bernd Kölmel, sees the draft EU Budget of 2017 presented by EU Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva today as overall positive. According to Koelmel "it is important that the management of the migration and refugee crisis and the fight against terrorism have been addressed with a total increase of 1.8 Billion Euro”. Bernd Koelmel criticized the still high expenditure in the agricultural sector and the gap between projected payments and effective expenditures. “There is a clear need for an open discussion in the upcoming months. We need a focus-orientated approach in EU expenditure”.

Koelmel also welcomes savings from about 23.5 per cent in cohesion policy. “We must stop continuous subsidization.” The focus on future spending should be in areas that will ensure long-term growth and jobs. These include the research program Horizon 2020, the promotion of the satellite navigation system Galileo, the optimizing of transport routes (Marco Polo) and the Student exchange program Erasmus+.

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