Prime Minister Robert Abela on Sunday vowed to fight for Malta’s slice of the EU budget, noting that the country’s strong economy over the past years worked against it during budget negotiations.
EU leaders this weekend walked away from a European council summit that failed to agree on the bloc’s 2021-2027 budget.
Speaking during an interview on ONE radio, Dr Abela said the UK exit from the EU had left a €60 billion hole in the bloc’s budget.
He said while four countries were arguing the EU’s budget should be reduced, others like Malta were fighting for an increase.
Former PN MEP candidate Peter Agius told The Sunday Times of Malta that the island could see its slice of the EU budget slashed by 25%.
Mr Agius said the sum on the table right now for Malta for the period 2021-2027 is about €596 million in structural and cohesion funds. This would be down from the €786 which had been secured for the period between 2013 and 2020.
Dr Abela insisted Malta’s position was that it would not accept a decrease in cohesion funds or EU money meant for farmers.
He said the last PN government had agreed to pay into the EU budget six times more than it received in funding for farmers.
Dr Abela said the current budget talks would see Malta paying in 10 times more than it received in EU farming subsidies, a proposal the prime minister said he could not agree to.
The prime minister said that while Malta’s economy had improved, EU funds were still crucial, and farmers needed more funding.
Reflecting on his first European Council summit, the prime minister said it had been a difficult two days packed with non-stop negotiations.
He said moments like these defined the country’s future, and further summits would be held to continue the budget negotiations.
Dr Abela said Malta had been well received by other EU leaders, as well as European Parliament president David Sassoli and European Commissioner Frans Timmermans.
The prime minister said the changes implemented by the government in January had been well received in Brussels.