Changes from plenary report to plenary report

AddedAmend heading as follows:

Removed69. Highlights in particular the importance of reinforcing the means for European cooperation in defence matters and the harmonisation of the defence sector to better respond to the unprecedented geopolitical challenges; considers that such cooperation not only makes Europe and its citizens safer but also leads to greater efficiency, potential savings and strategic autonomy; notes the importance of ‘military mobility’ in funding dual-use transport infrastructure, enabling Member States to rapidly concentrate military power in the context of the war and to support missions and operations under the common security and defence policy; underlines that the programme is oversubscribed and has substantial absorption capacity; decides, therefore, to increase appropriations for ‘military mobility’ by EUR 20 million above the DB;

AddedEU observatory for agricultural land, control and access to farmland

Removed70. Strongly supports EU efforts to tackle rising security threats such as the spread of disinformation, including online disinformation, fake news campaigns against the EU, terrorism, radicalisation and violent extremism within the EU and its neighbouring countries;

Added In accordance with Article 15.3 of the Financial Regulation, the Conciliation Committee agrees to make commitment appropriations available again on the budget line 01 02 01 01 — European Research Council. Budget remarks will be adjusted accordingly:

Removed71. Recalls the crucial role played by decentralised agencies operating in the field of security and law enforcement, in particular with regard to the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) and the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA) which have both seen their mandates expanded; proposes targeted staffing increases and financial reinforcements to allow them to properly perform their new tasks;

AddedThis is with the understanding that amendments introduced by the European Parliament or the Council cannot modify or extend the scope of an existing legal base, or impinge on the administrative autonomy of the institutions, and that the action can be covered by available resources.

Removed72. Reinforces Heading 5 overall by EUR 41 000 000 in commitment appropriations above the DB and by EUR 46 000 000 compared to the Council;

Added1.7. Budget nomenclature

RemovedHeading 6 - Neighbourhood and the World

AddedThe budget nomenclature proposed by the Commission in the Draft Budget, as amended by Amending Letter 1/2025, is agreed, with the inclusion of the new pilot projects and preparatory actions. The Conciliation Committee also agrees to split the budget line 15 03 01 Reform and Growth Facility for Western Balkans – Operational expenditure in 6 distinct budget lines, per country, as follows:

Removed73. Emphasises that, and once more as a consequence of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, the international context has deteriorated rapidly as a result of the food, energy, humanitarian and economic crises , which have dramatically increased pressure on Heading 6; welcomes the fact that the introduction of the Ukraine Facility over the MFF ceilings and the Western Balkan Facility provides a stable basis for support for Ukraine and the Western Balkan countries and releases some pressure on the availabilities within Heading 6 and more particularly on the cushion and buffers in the NDICI envelope; reminds that the commensurate redeployments generate gaps on some other budget lines which are difficult to manage;

Added 15 03 01 01 Albania

Removed74. Reiterates its full support to Ukraine in the fight for its freedom and democracy; deplores the terrible impact of lives and the suffering of Ukraine People caused by unprovoked and unjustifiable Russia's war of aggression; welcomes the decision to grant the Ukraine candidate country status and insists on the need to deploy the necessary funds to support its accession process;

Added 15 03 01 02 Bosnia and Herzegovina

Removed75. Stresses the importance of the Southern Neighbourhood line in supporting political, economic and social reforms in the region taking into consideration the increasing humanitarian needs in the region as well as other purposes of regional cooperation in providing assistance to refugees, in particular Syrian and Palestinian refugees, and in enabling support along the southern migration routes; proposes to increase appropriations for the line by EUR 60 million above the DB, including to reinforce funding for UNRWA based on EU regulations and values;

Added 15 03 01 03 Kosovo

Removed76. Underlines that the war continues to have significant effects on countries in the Eastern Neighbourhood, such as the Republic of Moldova, that have provided shelter and assistance to refugees fleeing the war and faced the knock-on effects of sky-high inflation and energy prices; stresses the need for targeted financial and technical assistance to help these countries stabilise their economies and strengthen public infrastructure amidst these pressures; underlines the importance of sustained support for candidate countries in implementing the necessary accession-related reforms and in enhancing their resilience and preventing and countering hybrid threats; decides, therefore, to increase appropriations by EUR 50 million above the DB for the Eastern Neighbourhood to address these complex challenges; proposes, furthermore, to increase accession-related support under the Instrument for Pre-Accession (IPA III) by EUR 3 million in 2025 to accelerate the reform process, enhance resilience, and ensure a smooth transition towards EU standards;

Added 15 03 01 04 Montenegro

Removed77. Proposes to place an amount of EUR 30 million in reserve that can be lifted upon an unconditional withdrawal by the Georgian Government of the controversial law on 'transparency of foreign influence' and a clear commitment that it would not propose such a law again; further emphasises the importance of ensuring that any legislative action aligns with democratic principles, transparency, and human rights, reinforcing Georgia’s pathway towards European integration; underlines that the remaining funding for Georgia should be redirected as much as possible to support civil society.

Added 15 03 01 05 North Macedonia

Removed78. Proposes to reinforce funding for several budget lines under the NDICI chapter, in particular the Global Challenges thematic strand; emphasises the importance of strengthening cooperation with African countries, particularly in the areas of sustainable development and economic partnership and in line with the existing instruments of enhanced cooperation between EU Member States and African countries; stresses the importance of the People strand in reducing catastrophic food insecurity in many countries in the World and in supporting health, education, gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment; highlights that support to women and girls to access quality education significantly improves their chances to acquire the knowledge and skills to compete in the labour market, gain life skills necessary to navigate and make decisions about their own lives; highlights the need to ensure sufficient EU support to promote the protection of women’s rights, sexual and reproductive health and LGBTIQ+ rights and to further reinforce the work on these aspects by civil society organisations, human rights defenders and journalists, especially in countries where these rights are under threat;

Added 15 03 01 06 Serbia

Removed79. Shares the Council’s assessment that the needs for humanitarian aid have reached new heights; considers that, given the highly challenging international context, increasing geopolitical instability, accelerating humanitarian disasters around the globe, rising extreme poverty and hunger, and the ongoing climate change-induced emergencies, humanitarian aid needs in 2025 are expected to be much higher than estimated by the Council and the Commission, not least since humanitarian aid to Ukraine will continue to be covered under Heading 6 rather than the Ukraine Facility; points out that the Union’s humanitarian aid budget has relied heavily on the Emergency Aid Reserve (EAR), driving resources away from the EAR’s other objectives and reducing the Union’s ability to respond to emergencies; insists that the proposal with the possible mobilisations of EAR will still fall short of needs and regrets that the lack of available margin under Heading 6 does not allow for further reinforcement; proposes, therefore, to increase appropriations for humanitarian aid by EUR 120 million compared to the DB;

AddedThe corresponding budget remark will be introduced accordingly, as follows: “This appropriation is intended to cover the operational expenditure and financial support related to actions carried out under the framework of the Reform and Growth Facility for the Western Balkans for Albania / Bosnia and Herzegovina / Kosovo / Montenegro / North Macedonia / Serbia in line with Article 6 of REGULATION (EU) 2024/1449.”

Removed80. Wishes to add item lines in the new budget article for the Western Balkan Facility, following up on a previous declaration and the intention of the Council regarding a new nomenclature; proposes to create one line per beneficiary country in the region without putting into question the facility’s reform incentives and intervention logic; ensures, thus, better transparency and accountability to the budget authority;

Added3. Statements

Removed81. Calls for consistent and sustainable budgeting for all gender-related activities in the EU Defence and Security sector, in line with the EU Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security;

Added3.1. Joint statement by the European Parliament and the Council on payment appropriations

Removed82. Further to strengthening the availabilities in the external policies heading, proposes to add EUR 4 million to the budget line for civilian CSDP missions and EUR 1 million to Nuclear Safety;

AddedThe European Parliament and the Council call on the Commission to continue closely and actively monitoring during the year 2025 the implementation of the programmes of the current and previous MFFs (particularly in sub-heading 2a and Rural Development), also linked to the implementation of Regional Emergency Support to Reconstruction (RESTORE) in line with the final legal set up and the uptake by Member States. To that end, the European Parliament and the Council invite the Commission to present, in a timely manner, updated figures concerning the state of affairs and estimates regarding 2025 payment appropriations. If the figures show that the appropriations entered in the 2025 budget are insufficient to cover the needs, the European Parliament and the Council invite the Commission to present as soon as possible an appropriate solution, inter alia a draft amending budget, with a view to allowing the European Parliament and the Council to take any necessary decisions as soon as possible without undue delay for justified needs. Where applicable, the European Parliament and the Council will take into account the urgency of the matter, shortening the eight-week period for a decision if deemed necessary. The same applies mutatis mutandis if the figures show that the appropriations entered in the 2025 budget are higher than needed.

Removed83. Overall, reinforces Heading 6 by EUR 256 200 000 in commitment appropriations above the DB and by EUR 234 461 645 compared to the Council reading;

Added3.2. Joint statement by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on releasing the payments linked to the RESTORE proposals in the 2025 budget

RemovedHeading 7 - European Public Administration

AddedThe European Parliament, the Council and the Commission take note of the ongoing discussions on the Regional Emergency Support to Reconstruction (RESTORE) proposals to provide additional assistance to Member States affected by recent natural disasters. Pending the adoption of the legal base the payments linked to these proposals included in the amending letter (EUR 3 billion) are included in the adopted budget as a provision and will be released when the RESTORE proposals are adopted in line with Article 49(1) of the Financial Regulation.

Removed84. Recalls that spending under Heading 7 should be set at a level that guarantees that the Union has an effective and efficient administration; considers that the Council’s cuts in this heading are unjustified and would not allow the Commission to recruit suitable staff in Luxembourg and to fulfil its tasks; restores therefore the DB for the Commission administrative expenditure, including with respect to its Offices;

RemovedPilot projects and preparatory actions (PP-PAs)

Removed85. Recalls the importance of pilot projects and preparatory actions (PP-PAs) as tools for the formulation of political priorities and the introduction of new initiatives that have the potential to turn into standing Union activities and programmes; adopts, following a careful analysis of all the proposals submitted and taking fully into account the Commission's assessment of their compliance with legal requirements and implementability, a balanced package of PP-PAs that reflects Parliament’s political priorities; calls on the Commission to swiftly implement PP-PAs and provide feedback on their performance and results delivered on the ground;

RemovedPayments

Removed86. Underlines the need to provide a sufficient level of payment appropriations in the 2025 budget and decides, as a general rule, to reinforce payment appropriations on those lines which are amended in commitment appropriations;

RemovedOther Sections

RemovedSection I – European Parliament

Removed87. Maintains unchanged the overall level of its budget for 2025 set at EUR 2 499 233 329, in line with its estimates of revenue and expenditure for the financial year 2025; incorporates budgetary-neutral adjustments to reflect updated information which was not available earlier this year;

Removed88. Calls for an establishment of the Single Seat of the European Parliament;

Removed89. Reiterates the Parliament’s priorities for the forthcoming financial year, namely, focusing Parliament’s budget on its core functions of co-legislator, acting as one arm of the budgetary authority, representing citizens and scrutinizing the work of other institutions and the implementation of EU legislation, as well as providing the resources for cyber-security and IT development and priority projects on engaging with citizens as well as green and accessible Parliament;

Removed90. In line with its resolution of 25 April 2024 on its estimates of revenue and expenditure for the financial year 2025 and taking into account the answers provided by the Secretary-General of the Parliament on 2 September 2024:

Removed(a) recalls that visitors groups in all the places of work of the Parliament represent an important tool for Members to connect with constituents and to demonstrate their parliamentary work to constituents; welcomes the fact that the Secretary-General will propose to the Quaestors to adjust the ceilings to reflect the increased costs faced by visitors groups; expects the decision on the adjustment of the ceilings to be taken as soon as possible;

Removed(b) notes that it is planned to have 19 European Experiences opened outside Brussels by end of 2025; reiterates its calls for the establishment of Europa Experiences in all Member States as soon as possible; recalls that Europa Experiences should allow all citizens to have a better understanding of the functioning of the Union institutions;

Removed(c) notes that Parliament is working on a building renovation plan and a comprehensive long-term building strategy to take into account new ways of working, costs, budgetary constraints and the targets and objectives of the Green Deal and ‘Fit for 55’ legislative package; expects the Committee on Budgets to be informed in a timely manner;

Removed(d) looks forward to the installation of photovoltaic panels to full capacity in the PFLIMLIN and DE MADARIAGA and CHURCHILL buildings;

Removed(e) insists on the need to increase chartered train capacity between Brussels and Strasbourg in 2025;

Removed(f) highlights that one of the most powerful weapons against disinformation is fact-based communication regarding the Parliament’s activities including outreach in the languages of linguistic minorities and communities, where appropriate; welcomes the comprehensive actions taken by the services, including the EPLOs, in that regard; expects that such activities are further strengthened, including the close cooperation with other EU institutions and security services in Member States;

Removed(g) recalls that the Secretary-General committed to initiate discussions with the responsible governing bodies before the end of 2024 on the possibility for APAs, subject to certain conditions, to accompany Members of the European Parliament on official Parliament delegations and missions during the conciliation between the Bureau and the Committee on Budgets on Preliminary Draft Estimates of the European Parliament for 2025 last April.

Removed91. Takes note that Article 44(2) of the Implementing Measures of the Members of the European Parliament Statute provides for the possibility to finance extra costs linked to the parliamentary assistance budgets transferring appropriations from their General Expenditure Allowance (GEA); calls on Parliament's administration to take the necessary measures to enable Members who wish to do so to use their GEA to cover the cost of APA missions; highlights that such a measure would help Members to address their increasing staffing needs while being budgetary neutral;

Removed92. Points out that multilingualism is a fundamental principle that makes the content of deliberations in the EU institutions more accessible and transparent, and ensures that proceedings are democratic;

RemovedOther Sections (Sections IV-X)

Removed93. Is deeply concerned with the situation of Heading 7 of the current MFF; recalls that the constraints are the results of the cuts applied by the Council to the Commission’s already very low initial proposal when agreeing on the current MFF 2021-2027; regrets the Council’s opposition to the Commission’s proposal to increase the ceiling of Heading 7 in the MFF revision as from 2024; points to the failure to address the issue of the ceiling of Heading 7 in the MFF revision; highlights that the forecasted negative margin for 2025 presupposes the use of special instruments in Heading 7 for that purpose;

Removed94. Condemns the Commission’s horizontal approach to reduce the estimates of the institutions in order to adhere to the principle of stable staffing, and to a maximum increase of 2 % for non-salary related expenditure, despite the inflationary context and irrespective of new tasks given to the institutions by the Commission and the co-legislators; underlines the negative consequences of this approach on the work of the institutions and working conditions of their staff;

Removed95. Highlights that the largest parts of the institutions’ budgets are fixed by statutory or contractual obligations impacted by inflation; is concerned about the high cost of living and the increasing prices in Luxembourg, in particular the rising housing costs entailing difficulties for all institutions based in Luxembourg in recruiting staff; highlights the importance of the housing allowance as a temporary solution to this challenge; rejects the Council’s horizontal approach to cut the appropriations for the housing allowances in these institutions;

Removed96. Rejects the Council decision to reduce the estimates of the Commission, of the Court of Justice and of the European Court of Auditors by an additional amount in order to compensate for the housing allowance in the Parliament budget; is of the opinion that inviting the Parliament to reconsider its position on the allowance in its own budget by reducing the estimates of the other institutions by the corresponding amount is against the gentlemen’s agreement;