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| EU budget plans for 2013 | EU budget plans for 2013 |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| The proposed 2013 EU budget of 137.9bn euros is equivalent to £111bn. | The proposed 2013 EU budget of 137.9bn euros is equivalent to £111bn. |
| The European Parliament voted to back a 6.8% rise in EU spending for 2013 - the amount the European Commission asked for. But the 27 governments - the Council - voted for a rise of 2.79% instead. So now they are trying to negotiate a compromise. | The European Parliament voted to back a 6.8% rise in EU spending for 2013 - the amount the European Commission asked for. But the 27 governments - the Council - voted for a rise of 2.79% instead. So now they are trying to negotiate a compromise. |
| Over the past decade, the EU budget has risen considerably as the graph below shows. Bear in mind that the EU usually spends less than its budget allows, so that the final spending figure for 2013 may be less than the approved budget. | Over the past decade, the EU budget has risen considerably as the graph below shows. Bear in mind that the EU usually spends less than its budget allows, so that the final spending figure for 2013 may be less than the approved budget. |
| Twelve countries have joined the EU since 2000, bringing the total to 27. The EU budget represents about 1% of the member states' total GDP. | Twelve countries have joined the EU since 2000, bringing the total to 27. The EU budget represents about 1% of the member states' total GDP. |
| In 2012, five countries - Germany, France, Italy, the UK, and Spain - contributed nearly half of the EU budget. | |
| Each country's payment is divided into three parts: a fixed percentage of gross national income (GNI), customs duties collected on behalf of the EU (known as "traditional own resources") and a percentage of VAT (sales tax) income. | |
| There is one other important part of the revenue calculations: the UK rebate, which returns to the UK about half of its net contribution to the budget. The system was set up because in the 1980s relatively more of the UK contribution went into EU agricultural support, which mainly benefited farmers in France and other Mediterranean countries. | |
| This rebate is paid for by the other 26 countries as a fixed amount of their gross national income. In 2011 the rebate was 3.56bn euros. |