Press briefing: morning 24 October 2014
The Prime Minister's Official Spokesperson answered questions on the European Union budget.
European Union budget
When asked about the European Commission’s revision of the UK contribution to the EU budget, the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesperson (PMOS) said the Prime Minister raised the issue at this morning’s EU Council meeting, adding the Prime Minister wasn’t the only head of government who had raised the issue. The fact that this money was taxpayer’s money was at the forefront of the Prime Minister’s mind, the PMOS said.
With regard to next steps, the PMOS said the budget revision wasn’t just a technical consideration - it was something which needed full, detailed, and political-level discussion, which is what EU finance ministers would be doing. On the question of when the UK would be given a final sum of money to pay, the PMOS said this raised a very important point, given that a bill was being presented to the UK when the calculations were not seemingly settled.