Apr 02, 2022

EU BUDGET POLICY BRIEF

To achieve strategic autonomy, the EU needs to use both regulatory and budgetary intervention. This policy brief shows that the share of the EU budget dedicated to policies contributing to strategic autonomy has increased to almost 20% in the new Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), compared to 17% in the previous one, although this is well below the European Commission’s 2018 pro[1]posal. The largest relative increases from the previous MFF are in defence, digital policy, healthcare and research and development, areas that are also associated with large shifts in the global environment. However, the ‘national sovereignty’ aspect of some policy areas – in particular foreign policy and defence – continues to undermine their support in the MFF negotiations.