Members of the European Parliament called the document "insufficient" and criticized the proposed €32.8 billion spending cut. As the budget requires parliamentary approval, pressure is mounting to reach an agreement by the end of 2026.
The European Parliament rejected the cuts proposed in the draft long-term EU budget for the period 2028–2034, as reported to journalists at a press conference on Tuesday by Members of the European Parliament Carla Tavares and Siegfried Mureșan.
Two Cypriot parliamentarians, who currently lead the budget negotiations among member states, presented a compromise text last week that included cuts to the union's overall budget amounting to €32.8 billion.
These cuts were a compromise between countries insisting on significant reductions and those demanding increased funding for agriculture and regional funds.
Disagreements among lawmakers intensify pressure on an already complicated process. The EU aims to conclude negotiations by the end of 2026 to avoid dragging them into 2027, a key election year, and the growing distance between member states and the Parliament's position jeopardizes this plan.
According to the European Parliament, the proposed cuts weaken an already insufficient budget, as the plan presented by the European Commission in July 2025 for €2 trillion has already been deemed inadequate by the deputies.
"The European Parliament firmly rejects these cuts," Mureșan stated at the press conference on Tuesday. "It categorically opposes the Council's proposal to set funding for agriculture and cohesion policy at an even lower level than the already insufficient amount proposed by the European Commission."
In its proposal, the European Parliament insisted on a 10% increase in the budget. The deputies also suggested excluding debt repayment expenses under the Next Generation EU mechanism, a common borrowing approved in 2020 to mitigate the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the compromise text, Cyprus decided not to address issues related to budget adjustment mechanisms known as "rebates," EU-level tax revenues, so-called own resources, as well as the principle of linking the budget to the rule of law.
In response, the European Parliament criticized what it described as a lack of ambition.
"We need to move forward on the issue of own resources," Tavares told reporters. "This is not in the draft text. By cutting expenses and not introducing new own resources, it is difficult to achieve a strong and renewed budget."
What is at stake
Current budget negotiations began in July 2025 when the European Commission presented its draft budget of €2 trillion, which represents a significant departure from the existing framework.
The Commission outlined three key spending priorities: the Competitiveness Fund, the Global Europe initiative, and Horizon programs.
The most significant structural innovation concerns the distribution of regional, agricultural, and fisheries funds: the Commission proposed replacing the existing system with national and regional partnership plans tailored to each member state.
The budget also reserves funds for repaying borrowings under the Next Generation EU.
The draft text prepared by the Cypriot presidency will serve as the basis for discussions at the EU leaders' meeting to be held in Brussels on June 18–19.
