The EU budget, a guide

The EU budget is no simple matter, but then no budget ever is. A yearly exercise based on a seven year “financial framework” and covering every euro spent by the EU, either directly or, most often, through the member states, it is the blood that courses through Europe's veins making the Union function and deliver its benefits to the citizen.

Following the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty earlier this year, Parliament is now a true co-legislator for the entire budget, meaning it fully shares responsibility with the Council of Ministers, representing the EU governments, and is fighting to ensure that the funds made available will enable the EU to carry out its duties as citizens expect.

In the weeks to come you will find all the information on the EU budget here: the figures, the facts and the negotiations, as they move towards the final decisions for 2011 and beyond.