COUNCIL ADOPTS CONCLUSIONS ON 2002 BUDGET PRIORITIES.

Gathered on 12 March in Brussels, EU Finance Ministers adopted a set of Conclusions on priorities for next year's EU Budget, due to be presented by the European Commission in the Spring. According to the Ministers, the all-important concerns the Commission outlined last 21 February should not necessarily lead to higher operational spending. In line with what was decided at last December's Nice Summit, Finance Ministers stressed the need to observe the financial perspective and the Council budgetary discipline Regulation despite extra spending in the beef and veal sector due to the BSE crisis, even if new measures have to be taken to deal with the problem. The Council also instructed the Commission to include an estimated budget surplus in its Autumn letter of amendment.Re-emphasising their commitment to full compliance with the 6 May 1999 Inter-Institutional Agreement, the Council highlighted the importance of observing the...