EU leaders clash over new long-term budget
At the Brussels summit, leaders seek a compromise on spending, revenue and support for Ukraine.
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EU leaders will discuss the multiannual budget for 2028 to 2034 on Thursday and Friday. An Irish compromise proposal cuts the European Commission’s original plan by €141 billion, but leaves the main political divisions intact.
The European Council is meeting in Brussels for a two-day summit. The agenda includes competitiveness, energy prices, the war in Ukraine, migration and the European Union’s long-term budget. The member states must ultimately reach unanimous agreement on that budget.
The Irish EU presidency circulated an amended negotiating proposal on 10 October. The plan is based on a budget of €1.62 trillion for seven years. According to Ireland, that is 8 per cent less than the European Commission’s proposal, but still around 30 per cent more than the current multiannual financial framework.
The difference is not only a matter of size. The Commission wants to make more money available for competitiveness, research, innovation, security and defence. At the same time, many member states want to protect traditional spending on agriculture and regional development. Ireland is trying to bring both objectives together in a single budget framework.
Revenue is also the subject of debate. The Irish proposal refers to new own resources that, according to the presidency, could raise around €55 billion a year. It is a negotiating package; the member states have not yet given final approval to the individual levies or contributions.
For the Netherlands, the discussion is relevant because the size of the EU budget partly determines how much in national contributions is needed and how much money becomes available for agriculture, research, infrastructure and border policy. The Netherlands is among the countries that have traditionally viewed a sharp rise in joint spending critically.
The budget must also provide room for new priorities. The EU wants to invest in technology and defence, while the member states must also repay the costs of earlier joint borrowing. Greater flexibility could enable the Union to respond more quickly to crises, but would make it more difficult for parliaments and national governments to determine in advance exactly where the money will go.
The summit is primarily intended to provide political direction. A final agreement is not expected on Thursday. According to President António Costa, the Council does want to untangle the main issues as far as possible, so that an agreement can be reached by the end of 2026 and the new budget can begin in 2028 without a funding gap.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- EU leaders are discussing the multiannual budget for 2028-2034.
- The Irish proposal is based on €1.62 trillion and refers to new own resources.
- A final multiannual budget requires unanimity among the member states, followed by approval from the European Parliament.
Left
Arguments The EU must invest enough collectively in climate, social cohesion, research, public services and support for Ukraine. From this perspective, a smaller budget could disproportionately affect poorer regions and European public interests.
Values Solidarity, redistribution, public investment and European cooperation.
Consequences A budget that is too tight could lead to less support for regions, farmers, research and social programmes; joint revenue could instead ease pressure on national budgets.
Centre
Arguments The budget must finance new priorities without abruptly abandoning existing commitments. The institutional process requires a compromise between net contributors, recipients, the European Parliament and the Commission.
Values Budgetary discipline, predictability, practicality and administrative continuity.
Consequences A compromise would prevent a funding gap, but would probably leave no group completely satisfied.
Right
Arguments The EU should concentrate on core tasks such as security, border control and competitiveness. From this perspective, higher joint spending or new European levies would increase the distance between EU governance and national voters.
Values National control, lower burdens, efficiency and security.
Consequences A smaller or more tightly defined budget would limit collective capacity, but could give national governments more control over taxpayers’ money.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The figures, procedure and agenda items were checked against official EU material and Reuters. The text makes clear that these are proposals and negotiations, not established policy.
- confirmed The European Council is discussing the 2028-2034 budget on 15 and 16 October 2026. — Listed on the European Council’s official agenda. source
- confirmed The Irish proposal amounts to €1.62 trillion and is 8 per cent below the Commission proposal. — Mentioned by the Irish EU presidency. source
- confirmed A final agreement is not expected on Thursday. — The sources describe the meeting as providing direction and the negotiations as unresolved. source
Editor's note
It is certain that the European Council will discuss the budget and the Irish negotiating proposal. The figures cited come from the Irish proposal; there is still no political agreement on the size, levies or allocation.Sources
- Europese Raad, 15-16 oktober 2026 — Raad van de Europese Unie
- Irish Presidency publishes its Proposal for the EU’s Long-term Budget — Iers EU-voorzitterschap
- EU leaders to clash over long-term budget, no quick deal in sight — Reuters
More on this in Dutch media
- de Volkskrant — „begroting brussel”
- RTL Nieuws — „begroting brussel”
- NOS — „begroting brussel”