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BackA new microfinance instrument for employment; more money for energy projects, for promoting small and medium-sized business and for milk farmers: that is what suggestions of the European Parliament included for the EU budget, which was adopted on Thursday in its first reading.
The new microfinance instrument shall provide both unemployed and young people as well as disadvantaged groups in society with the opportunity to make a new start. The aim is to provide the target group with loans of up to € 25,000 to start up (micro) enterprises, which otherwise the banks would not grant them. € 100 million will be made available for that purpose.
In view of the lower milk prices in the markets, additional € 300 million subsidies will be made available for the struggling dairy farmers. Particularly caring was the attitude of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists & Democrats, who even tabled a proposal, which aimed at € 600 million subsidies. This motion, however, did not get a majority.
In accordance with the resolution of the European Parliament, € 1.5 billion will be allocated to energy networks, offshore wind farms and for technologies to store carbon dioxide within the scope of the EU economic stimulus package.
Overall, the EU budget will total € 127.5 billion, compared to the Council’s proposed € 120.5 billion. The European Parliament and the Council will now have to agree on an EU budget by the end of the year, whereby one can assume that the budget volume will eventually be closer to € 120.5 billion than to € 127.5 billion. The volume of the EU budget corresponds to about 1 percent of the EU gross domestic product.
In view of the lower milk prices in the markets, additional € 300 million subsidies will be made available for the struggling dairy farmers. Particularly caring was the attitude of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists & Democrats, who even tabled a proposal, which aimed at € 600 million subsidies. This motion, however, did not get a majority.
In accordance with the resolution of the European Parliament, € 1.5 billion will be allocated to energy networks, offshore wind farms and for technologies to store carbon dioxide within the scope of the EU economic stimulus package.
Overall, the EU budget will total € 127.5 billion, compared to the Council’s proposed € 120.5 billion. The European Parliament and the Council will now have to agree on an EU budget by the end of the year, whereby one can assume that the budget volume will eventually be closer to € 120.5 billion than to € 127.5 billion. The volume of the EU budget corresponds to about 1 percent of the EU gross domestic product.