During this plenary session, the European Parliament will approve the budget guidelines for the second year of the multi-annual financial framework (MFF) 2021-2027. The 2022 budget, negotiated with the input of shadow rapporteur Victor Negrescu MEP, includes important progressive achievements, among which are gender and climate mainstreaming, and measures to support SMEs, the digital transition, culture and education, mobility, humanitarian aid and migration.

Victor Negrescu MEP, S&D negotiator on the 2022 budget, said:

“2022 has to be a full implementation year for EU programmes. We have to make sure that the EU’s budget delivers on all EU priorities, relaunches our economies, ensures the protection of our citizens and invests in our future. We call for more ambition from the Commission and member states in reaching our common targets, managing the pandemic and preparing for future challenges linked with the digital and green transformations. Investing more in healthcare and education, and developing our economies and social infrastructure – while leaving no one behind – are key priorities. We strongly believe that the European Pillar for Social Rights should be a central guiding line for how we want to relaunch Europe and ensure a bright future for our young people. We need a citizen-centred EU budget that brings added value across Europe!”

Eider Gardiazabal MEP, S&D spokesperson on the budget, said:

“Respecting the MFF agreement is paramount for the S&D Group, which also means that new needs that have arisen after it was agreed and not already addressed remain to be financed. With these guidelines, the S&Ds’ priorities are expressed for the upcoming negotiations.

“The purpose of Frontex, the European Agency for border management that has recently faced heavy criticism, is not to turn the EU into a fortress, but to help member states manage the migration flows in a human way. In this sense, the S&Ds regret that there was not a majority in support of our willingness to make the recruitment of additional staff conditional on recruits having fundamental rights control expertise.”