BUDGET: PARLIAMENT DEMANDS INCREASE IN EXTERNAL EXPENDITURE IN 2003.

• Position: Brief Article

The report by Goran Farm still turns down the Commission's requests for additional staff in the run-up to enlargement. For good measure, the Parliament, which is not demanding any additional staff for itself, is also rejecting the posts sought by the Council. The Committee nevertheless reaffirms the priority of enlargement though it focuses on core issues, notably the printing and publication of the Community acquis, which should be funded by front-loading anticipated savings from 2002 under heading 5. The precise figure available will be known before the second reading in December, according to a Commission report on the execution of the current budget. For heading 7 (Pre-accession Aid), the Committee wants to increase the payment appropriations for the SAPARD programmes by Euro 400 million compared to the Council's draft budget and asks the Commission to prepare to launch specific regional co-operation measures (LEADER - accession) in the new Member States following enlargement.

The Committee's offensive against the Council is apparent through its proposals on heading 4. Despite the reduction of Euro 60 million in funding for the reconstruction of Afghanistan, the ceiling for heading 4 has still been exceeded by Euro 12 million. This over-run is due to a series of parliamentary demands: an extra Euro 6 million for East Timor and Euro 4 million for Latin America as well as appropriate EU funding (Euro 85 million) for the Global Health Fund - mainly for the World Aids Fund and the fight against malaria. In addition the Committee recommends allocating Euro 30 million for Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), while also supporting, through the CARDS programme, Community funding for the joint police force in Bosnia and Herzegovina...