BUDGET COUNCIL: MINISTERS DUE TO AGREE DRAFT 2002 FIGURES, AND BOOST =AFGHAN AID.

In the wake of the recommendations of the Budget Committee (CoBu), =Council experts and the work of the Committee of Member States' =Permanent Representatives to the EU (COREPER), EU Budget Ministers are =expected to confirm the core elements of their vote in first reading =(see European Report 2611 for further details). The Ministers should =thus reject the sharp increases in payment appropriations approved in =first reading by the European Parliament (see European Report 2630 for =further details), as well as the suggestion that the Commission should =make use of the flexibility instrument (see European Report 2631 for =further details).Agriculture.CoBu has firmly relayed a series of amendments by the European =Parliament's Agriculture Committee to Heading 1a (Market expenditure). =It proposes in particular to establish a Euro 200 million reserve to =address any additional costs to Member States of the food and mouth =crisis. Commission verification missions began on November 20 in the =United Kingdom, which is asking for Euro 1.5 billion. At the present =juncture, the budget line for veterinary crises amounts to just Euro 800 =million, half of which has already been committed for 2001, the =remaining Euro 400 million being carried over in the 2002 draft budget.MEPs also made other amendments to Heading 1a of the 2002 draft budget =concerning: beekeeping, the financing of the 2001 balance of the special =purchase regime for the storage and destruction of beef and veal, the =distribution of milk in schools, the promotion of agricultural produce =in the EU and third countries and genetic resources in respect of seeds. =In Heading 7 (Pre-accession), MEPs are keen to create a new instrument =to be known as IMPARD, allocated Euro 60 million and destined to manage =export refunds for agricultural produce from the candidate countries. At =the other extreme, the Agriculture Committee is looking to withdraw the =Euro 58 million earmarked for refunds on the export of live animals, on =the grounds that poor transportation conditions diminish animal welfare. =Finally, the European Commission should again propose the inclusion of =an additional Euro 55 million for European nut producers, essentially in =Spain.The Council is likely to reject all of these demands, except for the =Euro 2.5 million for beekeeping, in order to maintain a significant =margin of the order of Euro 90 million below the ceiling set in the =financial perspectives.Structural...