"There is a certain contempt on Von der Leyen's part for Parliament": what lies behind the Commission vs. European Parliament budget war

"This issue has been brewing for a long time. And what one senses is a certain disdain on the part of [Ursula] von der Leyen for the European Parliament ." A parliamentary source explains the origin of the strong confrontation taking place between the European Parliament and the President of the European Commission. The official reason is the European budget, whose "innovative" structure is not at all popular among the parliamentary groups, but the underlying reason is that the high-ranking German official works "completely behind the back" of Parliament. On this, and on many other issues.

And MEPs decided that the start of the budget process was the best moment to make this discontent clear. Consequently, at the end of October, the main groups sent a letter to Von der Leyen expressing their anger, including the European People's Party itself . They pointed out that the new budget, which will cover the period 2028-2034 but whose lengthy approval process has already begun, represents a "renationalization," and that it would give much more power to national governments and take it away from the regions.

They also criticized the cuts to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), as well as the fact that this funding will be combined with cohesion funds, and, very importantly, stressed the absolute necessity of "guaranteeing the powers and role of the European Parliament." That is, they demanded the respect that, as already mentioned, some in the European Parliament believe Von der Leyen does not show them. " There are no conversations, no sensitivity to what people think , the importance of the Parliament is not valued," parliamentary sources insist.

The Commission President's response came on Sunday in a letter sent to the Speaker of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, and to Mette Frederiksen, Prime Minister of Denmark and rotating President of the European Council. In her letter, Von der Leyen proposes establishing a " rural target " to ensure a minimum investment in the agricultural sector, and also suggests that " regional controls could be introduced to further guarantee the full participation of regional authorities in the preparation, implementation, and evaluation of the Plans, as well as a clear right for regional authorities to engage directly with the Commission."

It adds: "The role of the European Parliament and the Council in this new mechanism should be strengthened in the Interinstitutional Agreement. With the proposed changes to the legal texts provided in the annex to this letter, and throughout the entire process, the Commission is ready to support the European Parliament and the Council in the process leading to the adoption of the Multiannual Financial Framework."

This means that the Commission President has tried to address Parliament's major concerns. But the European Parliament points out that this is a " very slight step forward ." "There is no meeting with political representatives," they continue. The confrontation, therefore, threatens to continue throughout the long process. The intention is for the new budget to be approved by April or May 2027, so that it can come into effect in 2028.