Debate: A New Budget for the European Union?

As we approach the end of the EU budgetary review, Notre Europe invites various prominent scholars and EU observers to discuss the EU budget reform proposal put forward by Alfonso Iozzo, Stefano Micossi and Maria Teresa Salvemini in a policy paper published by CEPS some time ago (A New budget for the European Union?, CEPS policy brief n. 159, May 2008).

In this paper, Iozzo, Micossi and Salvemini propose to break up the EU budget into three separate chapters, each one with a different function (redistribution, provision of public goods and investment of long-term pan-European projects) and financed through different means (through national contributions, an EU VAT tax and Eurobonds respectively). How feasible is a change to a three-pillar structure, as the authors propose? Would this help to move away from "net returns' discussions towards budgetary discussions based on EU interest and public good considerations? Are the modes of financing proposed - the correction mechanism for the first chapter, the VAT tax for the second one - the most appropriate ones? These and other questions are object of analysis and discussion by a variety of experts. 

We launch the debate with the contributions of five experts plus that of Notre Europe. Other experts' contributions will be added in the coming weeks.