No EU Coronavirus recovery without parliamentary control

“The European Parliament must be fully involved in the discussion and implementation of the recovery plan and not side-lined from the decision-making. Full democratic accountability and parliamentary control is needed”, said Siegfried Mureşan MEP, Vice-Chairman of the EPP Group responsible for budgetary affairs.

Mureşan's statement comes ahead of the European Commission’s presentation on changes to the long-term EU budget and a new fund to finance the economic recovery from the Coronavirus crisis, expected on May 6.

“The recovery after the pandemic shall not be financed to the detriment of existing priorities. The EPP Group wants a future-proof long-term EU budget, capable of responding to citizens’ expectations and reacting to unforeseen events. The final budget deal is not just an agreement between the Council and the Commission, but it needs Parliament's agreement”, warned Mureşan.

“A modernised and ambitious long-term budget must be the main element of the recovery plan”, stated Jan Olbrycht MEP, who negotiates the long-term EU Budget on behalf of the Parliament, adding: “The European Parliament must play an active role in the recovery plan, as we represent the EU citizens."

“The recovery fund is the conclusive evidence that the EU needs a stronger and more flexible budget to respond to urgencies and unforeseen circumstances. Solidarity and cohesion must be at the forefront of this fund. To overcome the crisis we must not leave anyone behind”, said José Manuel Fernandes MEP, who is the EPP Group's Spokesman in the Budgets Committee, concluding: “Parliament does not accept fait accompli. We are not an ‘extension’ of the Commission and the Council.”