“The next months will be crucial for Europe’s youth and we are very clear: Our future cannot be undercut”, comments Leonie Martin, President of JEF on the recently launched “A Summer for our Europe” campaign. “Currently the so-called frugal countries are bargaining the compromise for the recovery plan. But the proposal for an EU recovery plan called ‘Next Generation EU’ bears elements of true fiscal power handled at the European level. For it to be a truly “Hamiltonian moment”, this embryo of common European debt needs to go further and rest on EU fiscal revenue and full democratic accountability. The introduction of new own EU resources, along with the Parliament’s full power to MEPs decide on both the revenue and expenditure side of the EU budget, is all the more important in order to guarantee the sustainability of EU investments in our common future, to create a consistent, independent and autonomous EU budget and – most importantly – for our voice as European citizens to matter. This is why the Conference on the future of Europe should not just be seized as an opportunity to discuss but as a decisive step towards a real constituent assembly to take next steps for our future.”
“We, the ‘Next Generation’, want to be free to have a future,” continues Martin. On this second action day of our #ASummerForOurEurope campaign, JEFers all over Europe are asking the heads of governments, reunited in the European Council meetings, and the European Parliament to deliver courageous answers on three main fundamental matters: the Multiannual Financial Framework, the Next Generation EU plan and the democratic reform of the Union.
“Crucially, adequate attention needs to be given to all European participation programmes which support active citizenship and fundamental rights and freedoms. In the current framework and with the existing EU budget, resources are very limited. That is why it is necessary to change the present setup and clearly speak about new own resources for our Union: not a cost for Member States but a resource for us all. Our future will not be a ‘one-shot’, and whether physically or virtually, European leaders need to hear us.” concludes Martin.
Background
On May 27 the European Commission presented an ambitious plan for the recovery called #NextGenerationEU and a new proposal for the Multiannual Financial Framework. Many organisations have sadly acknowledged the decreases compared to the 2018 proposal, while recognizing that European Commission increased the proposal from the Council bid in February.
From June 15 to June 17, the European Council and the European Parliament are discussing the recovery fund and the EU’s overall seven-year budget as well as the Conference on the Future of Europe.
JEF and the Multiannual Financial Framework and Recovery Fund
JEF Europe is currently supporting several initiatives (Europe’s recovery after the pandemic and Civil Society, Shaping Our Common Future: Supporting Active Citizenship to build resilient societies and foster transnational cooperation, Fundamental Rights: Put Our Money Where Our Mouth Is, #ReFundingEurope) that have a clear common goal: more resources for the future of European citizens. A few days after the anniversary of Erasmus on June 15, CSO are deploring the reduction in Erasmus+ funding compared to the Commission’s initial proposal of 2018. Same applies for Creative Europe and the European Solidarity Corps.
#ASummerForOurEurope Campaign
#ASummerForOurEurope campaign follows the crucial moments of this political season after the dramatic Covid-19 pandemic.
