“A ‘record-high’ EU budget? You’ll likely be hearing this constantly from Donald Tusk’s team now. But this ‘record’ lies in how much control Brussels is taking over the budgets of member states,” stated PiS MEP Piotr Müller. The politician warns that the new EU budget means “proportionally fewer funds for Poland, new taxes hitting consumers, and the dismantling of the Common Agricultural Policy.”
The New EU Budget
EU Budget Commissioner Piotr Serafin presented the draft EU budget for 2028–2034 in Brussels on Wednesday, amounting to €2 trillion. The plan includes, among other things, €300 billion for the agricultural sector, €451 billion for the Competitiveness Fund, and €218 billion in support for less developed regions.
The opposition is highly sceptical. Former Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski, commenting on the proposed changes to the Common Agricultural Policy, against which farmers protested in Brussels on Wednesday, described the budget draft as a “chainsaw massacre.”
A detailed analysis of the new EU budget was published online by PiS MEP Piotr Müller.
“A ‘record-high’ EU budget? You’ll probably hear this nonstop from Donald Tusk’s team. But the ‘record’ lies in how much more control Brussels is assuming over national budgets,” he wrote.
According to the PiS MEP, Poland is facing:
- proportionally fewer funds, including for regional policy,
- new taxes that hit consumers,
- dismantling of the Common Agricultural Policy,
- increased decision-making power for Brussels over the budget.
In Müller’s view, the new budget means “proportionally less funding for Poland than in the current framework negotiated by Mateusz Morawiecki, a conditionality mechanism applied to all expenditures, which acts as an instrument of centralization and blackmail of member states, new taxes impacting consumers, the dismantling of an independent Common Agricultural Policy and fewer resources for farmers, large sums for Ukraine, and the growth of bureaucracy instead of its reduction.”
The politician also highlighted provisions negatively affecting farmers:
“The EU is cutting the Common Agricultural Policy and, by introducing a deal with MERCOSUR, is weakening the market and making us dependent on imports. This is the ‘transformation’ supported by Donald Tusk’s government. Polish farmers and consumers who buy Polish food will feel the disastrous changes in this area acutely. We do not consent to this.”
“New Tools of Pressure”
The MEP also warns that the “EU budget for 2028–2034 proportionally reduces funds for cohesion policy and regional development, which is a blow to the growth of smaller towns and municipalities.” In his opinion, “instead of levelling the playing field, Brussels is narrowing it. These are the funds for our roads, kindergartens, nurseries, infrastructure, and other necessary investments!”
“The European Commission is receiving new tools of pressure. It will be able to block disbursements from the budget at any time, without a ruling, without debate. This is centralisation of power, not a community. It’s a budget of political punishment for the ‘disobedient.’ Additionally, Brussels wants to take a share of national budgets!” the politician warned.
In his conclusion, Müller stated:
“This is not a budget for Europe, it’s a budget for Brussels. Poland deserves a fair deal and a genuine voice at the table.”