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FINANCE

Swedish finance minister slams ‘unreasonable’ EU budget

Sweden has hit back at the European Commission after it asked for an estimated extra 15 billion kronor a year to help plug the Brexit budget gap.

Published: 2 May 2018 16:26 CEST
Swedish finance minister slams 'unreasonable' EU budget
Swedish finance minister Magdalena Andersson. Photo: Jessica Gow/TT
The Swedish government said the European Commission wants it to increase its payment to the European Union (EU) budget by 35 percent in in 2021-2027 period compared to its average payment from 2014-2020. 
 
“This is an unreasonable proposal. We cannot accept this,” Finance minister Magdalena Andersson told Sweden's TT newswire, after the budget proposal was published on Wednesday. 
 
“Sweden has contributed an enormous amount, partly as a net contributor to the European Union and partly because we have taken disproportionate responsibility for the 2015 refugee crisis,” she said. 
 
 
Swedish former Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt worked side-by-side with Britain in 2013 to drive through the first ever real-terms cut to the European Union's budget. 
 
But this year, the Commission wants the budget to return to growth, aiming to increase it from around 1 percent of the bloc's GDP in 2014-2020 to 1.11 percent in the next period. According to the government's estimates, this would be the equivalent of an extra 15 billion kronor for Sweden.
 
With France and Germany now working closely together to deliver reforms to the Eurozone, and the UK out, Sweden's only allies in fighting to slim the budget are now smaller countries like Denmark, Austria and The Netherlands. 
 
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the budget was was a “pragmatic plan for how to do more with less”. 
 
When Britain leaves the EU, more than 100 billion kronor will disappear from its annual budget. At the same time, the EU has recently taken on new responsibilities around border control, migration and defence. 
 
“The ball is now in the court of Parliament and Council. I strongly believe we should aim to have agreement before the European Parliament elections next year,” Juncker said. 
 
Andersson said she was in favour of some of the proposals in the budget, particularly a move to reduce EU financial support to countries, such as Poland and Hungary, which are weakening the rule of law. 
 
“There's going to be some extremely tough negotiations,” Andersson said about the budget. “Some people seem to think there's going to be some kind of easy solution to this, but that's not what I see ahead.” 
 
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DRIVING

EU countries to extend range of offences foreign drivers can be fined for

The EU has agreed to extend the number of driving offences for which motorists from other member states can be fined for and to make it easier for authorities to chase up the fines and make foreign drivers pay.

Published: 13 May 2024 17:28 CEST
EU countries to extend range of offences foreign drivers can be fined for

In the last voting session of this term, in April, the European Parliament passed new rules to ensure drivers who breach local traffic rules in another EU member state are found and fined.

The cross-border enforcement (CBE) directive was first adopted in 2015 after it was found that non-resident drivers were more likely to commit speeding offences. The European Commission estimated that in 2008, foreign drivers accounted for about 5 percent of road traffic in the EU but committed around 15 percent of speeding offences.

The directive partially improved the situation, but according to the Commission 40 percent of traffic violations committed in other EU countries are still unpunished “because the offender is not identified or because the fine is not enforced”.

In March 2023, the Commission therefore proposed updating existing measures.

New rules extend the type of offences that will trigger assistance from another member state and seek to improve collaboration among national authorities to identify and fine offenders.

The European Parliament and Council agreed in March on the final text of the directive, which is now being formally approved by the two institutions.

André Sobczak, Secretary-General at Eurocities, a group representing European cities in Brussels, said: “While the final outcome of the discussions is not ideal, we are pleased that EU policymakers have at least put the issue of the enforcement of local traffic rules on foreign vehicles on the table. As we approach an election year, I believe such a practical example can demonstrate why a European approach is necessary to address local issues.”

Which traffic offences are covered?

The previous directive covered eight driving misconducts that would require member states to cooperate: speeding, not wearing seat belts, failing to stop at a red traffic light, drink-driving, driving under the effect of drugs, not wearing a helmet (motorcycles / scooters), using a forbidden lane and using a mobile phone or other communication devices while driving.

The Commission proposed to add to the list not keeping a safe distance from the vehicle in front, dangerous overtaking, dangerous parking, crossing one or more solid white lines, driving the wrong way down a one way street, not respecting the rules on “emergency corridors” (a clear lane intended for priority vehicles), and using an overloaded vehicle.

The Parliament and Council agreed to these and added more offences: not giving way to emergency service vehicles, not respecting access restrictions or rules at a rail crossings, as well as hit-and-run offences.

Despite calls from European cities, the new directive does not cover offences related to foreign drivers avoiding congestion charges or low emission zones. In such cases, information about vehicle registration can only be shared among countries with bilateral agreements.

Karen Vancluysen, Secretary General at POLIS, a network of cities and regions working on urban transport, called on the next European Commission to take other local traffic offences, such as breaches of low emission zones, “fully at heart”.

Collaboration among national authorities

For the traffic violations covered by the directive, EU countries have to help each other to find the liable driver. The new directive further clarifies how.

Member states will have to use the European vehicle and driving licence information system (Eucaris) to get the data of the offender.

National authorities will have 11 months from the date of the violation to issue the fine to a vehicle from another EU member state. However, they will not have to resort to agencies or private entities to collect the fine. This was requested by the European Parliament to avoid scams or leaks of personal data.

Authorities in the country of the offender will have to reply to requests from another EU member state within two months.

When the amount of the fine is more than €70, and all options to have it paid have been exhausted, the member state where the violation occurred can ask the country of the offender to take over the collection.

The person concerned will be able to request follow-up documents in a different official EU language.

When will the new rules will be enforced?

Now that the EU Parliament has passed the law, the EU Council has to do the same, although there is no date set for when that will happen. Once the directive is adopted, EU countries will have 30 months to prepare for implementation.

Last year the Commission also proposed a new directive on driving licenses, but negotiations on the final text of this file will only take place after the European elections.

This article has been produced in collaboration with Europe Street news.

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