Budget 2007

That the EU reached a deal on its 2007 budget was almost in spite of rather than thanks to the Finnish presidency.

Ulla-Maj Wideroos, Finland’s junior finance minister, sprang a surprise on both the Council and the Commission by launching a bid for a ‘productivity declaration’ which would mean that only around half of EU officials due to retire by 2010 would be replaced.

The Commission protested that this would mean cutting around 1,700 staff posts and make it impossible to meet targets for recruiting officials from the ten new member states. At the meeting of budget ministers in November which was meant to clinch a deal with MEPs on a budget of around €114 billion, Wideroos failed to get enough support for her plan from member states and was negotiating with a delegation of MEPs without the backing of the Council. EU Budget Commissioner Dalia Grybauskaite? criticised what she saw as the "politicisation" of the Finns’ approach to the budget negotiations, reflecting a domestic Finnish debate about shrinking the size of the civil service. Wideroos compounded the difficulties by insisting that MEPs clarify their demands for greater transparency over EU spending on Common Foreign and Security Policy projects. EU officials described the meeting as a "total disaster". A deal was struck a week later for a total of €115.5 billion, €1.2bn higher than the Council wanted and €3.5bn more than in 2006.

n The Finns also got a deal on the eligibility criteria for the €3.5bn Globalisation Adjustment Fund which provides financial help to workers hit by sudden import surges. The number of workers affected by restructurings needed to qualify was lowered to take account of the proportionate effects on smaller countries.

That the EU reached a deal on its 2007 budget was almost in spite of rather than thanks to the Finnish presidency.

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