Memo: A quick and simple guide on current EU budget issues

Autumn and the beginning of winter are traditionally the 'EU budget season' as most pending issues of the current year's budget usually are negotiated together with the following year's budget. However, the number of such pending issues couples with their technicalities may combine to make it difficult to understand what is negotiated and why.

Hence the European Commission issued on the 7 November 2014 a quick and simple guide on EU budget issues relating to 2014 amending budgets and the 2015 General Budget.

The aspiration was to have the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union adopt the budgets under negotiation by December 2014.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: EU Budget 2014 and 2015: What's the issue? Why does it matter? http://www.europeansources.info/record/memo-eu-budget-2014-and-2015-whats-the-issue-why-does-it-matter/

European Commission: DG Financial Programming and Budget: Library: Documents: 2014 http://ec.europa.eu/budget/biblio/documents/2015/2015_en.cfm#db2015

European Commission: RAPID: MEMO/14/601: Revision of Member States' GNI contribution - Q&A http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-14-601_en.htm

ESO: Background information: EU budget: UK ordered to pay extra €2.1bn by December http://www.europeansources.info/record/eu-budget-uk-ordered-to-pay-extra-e2-1bn-by-december/

EUObserver, 13.11.14: Ministers face new battle over next year's EU budget http://euobserver.com/news/126512

Council of the European Union: Press Release, 13.11.14: Background; ECOFIN Council, Brussels, 14 November 2014 http://www.consilium.europa.eu/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/pressData/en/ecofin/145745.pdf

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