Enlargement not cost-free, says Schreyer

Date: 06/12/01

By Martin Banks

BUDGET Commissioner Michaele Schreyer has warned that enlargement of the EU in 2004 will not come "cost-free".

The German finance supremo said extending the size of the Union was one of the "key" challenges facing the EU's budget in coming years.

In a wide-ranging speech in Brussels last week, she also said the European Parliament should have a far greater say in EU budgetary affairs.

She said: "We must accept, of course, that enlargement means that there will be additional costs to the EU budget: this will not be a cost-free exercise.

"We must also remember that there were initially going to be just six accession countries in 2002. This figure has now risen to ten and the needs of these new members will be sizeable."

However, she said there was "room for manoeuvre" in the EU budget and the Union's finances would not be adversely affected when the first of the candidate countries are admitted.

Schreyer also said the Parliament should be given "full-scale" budgetary rights.

"The Parliament is the only democratically-elected EU institution but has no full-scale say on how the budget is spent. I regard it as very important that the Parliament should have full-scale budgetary rights."

This would also help build greater public confidence in the EU, she said.

"European taxpayers want to know exactly where and how the EU budget is spent. There has to be more transparency," she said.

The commissioner was addressing a group of European businessmen in Brussels on the short and long term aspects of the EU budget policy.

Budget Commissioner Michaele Schreyer has warned that enlargement of the EU will be one of the key challenges facing the EU's budget in coming years.