Statements by Parliament's long-term budget co-rapporteurs Siegfried Mureșan and Carla Tavares following their visit to Finland on 10 and 11 September.

“Our mission to Finland confirmed why Europe needs an ambitious investment-driven long-term budget. During our visit to Finland’s border with Russia, we saw first-hand the security challenges the future EU budget must address. Security and external border protection cannot be guaranteed by any one member state alone. We need stronger European action and investment in defence and security operations and infrastructure so that all Europeans are better protected.

“The Finnish border is a European border. By protecting the border with Russia, Finland provides security for the whole of the European Union. The country deserves support and solidarity. We need to have adequate funding for eastern flank regions bordering Russia and Ukraine.

“At the VTT research centre, we saw how EU-backed research and innovation can drive competitiveness. Europe cannot afford to fall behind in the global innovation race. Security and competitiveness are no longer separate agendas – a Europe that innovates is also a Europe that can defend itself.

“In our meetings, we emphasised that while new priorities, such as defence and competitiveness, must be properly addressed, there is no question that long-term priorities, such as agriculture and cohesion, must also remain adequately funded.

“Security also means food security, and the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy is the best tool we have to guarantee food security for our people and predictable, decent incomes for farmers,” Siegfried Mureşan (EPP, Romania), said.

“The next MFF must remain, above all, an investment budget – helping member states like Finland strengthen both security and innovation, while delivering real European added value no individual country could achieve alone.

“A smaller budget will not make these challenges disappear. On the contrary, it will only shift the cost back onto national budgets, at a higher price. An ambitious EU budget does not automatically translate into asking member states to pay more. Once inflation and economic growth are accounted for, the budget would broadly maintain, or even reduce, the real contributions of member states, especially if there is an agreement to introduce new genuine own resources, as the European Parliament is demanding. To avoid significant increases in member state budgetary contributions, own resources are unavoidable.

“Cohesion policy not only supports regions and reduces disparities but also strengthens security through dual-use investments, such as roads and bridges. It is also vital for regions bordering Russia and Ukraine, which have been economically and socially impacted by the war,” said Carla Tavares (S&D, Portugal).

“Europe cannot meet greater challenges with a weaker common budget. We need to invest together, act together and ensure that Finland – and every other member state – can benefit from the strength of Europe acting as one,” the two co-rapporteurs concluded