The Council took note of the presentation by the Commission of its draft for the EU's general budget for 2012.
Some delegations considered the Commission proposal not to be in line with the national fiscal consolidation measures and argued for further efforts to limit the increase of the EU's 2012 budget. Other delegations regarded the draft budget as a starting point for the discussions and stressed the need to continue implementing EU programmes in particular in the cohesion area.
It asked the Permanent Representatives Committee to examine the draft, with a view to enabling the Council to establish its position.
On 15 February, the Council established its priorities for the 2012 budget (see Council doc. 5895/11). These will be used by the incoming Polish presidency as a reference in negotiations with the European Parliament and the Commission later in the year.
In the draft budget, the Commission proposes a total of EUR 132.7 billion in payments (+ 4.9% compared with 2011) and EUR 147.4 billion in commitments (+ 3.7%). Payments represent 1.01% of EU gross national income and commitments 1.12%.
The Council is expected to establish its position on the draft budget at the end of July, and the Parliament at the end of October. If their positions diverge, a three-week conciliation process will start on 1 November.