German industry, trade unions and environmental groups call for stronger EU budget
Clean Energy Wire
An alliance of more than 20 organisations, including the Federation of German Industries (BDI), the Confederation of German Trade Unions (DGB) and environmental umbrella group DNR, has called on the German government to back a “significantly more ambitious and capable EU budget” for the period 2028 to 2034. European Movement Germany (EBD), which coordinated the appeal, said the German government must work towards a budget that “does justice to Europe’s joint challenges.”
The plea comes ahead of crucial talks at a European Council summit on 15 and 16 October, after a first budget proposal by the Irish Council Presidency proposed a cut of eight percent (141 billion euros) compared with the European Commission’s draft. Germany and several other net contributors want even deeper cuts, with chancellor Friedrich Merz arguing that generous contributions are no longer affordable.
The alliance said Europe must not pit competitiveness against climate and environmental protection, and should instead focus on the added value of joint investments that increase prosperity and security for all. “The great challenges of our time, from security and competitiveness to future technologies, can only be met together at the European level,” said EBD head Anna-Maija Mertens.
“This requires a clear division of tasks and reliable funding. Only a Europe that is capable of action can effectively defend its interests in the world,” she added, arguing that achieving this was “genuinely in Germany’s own interest.”
EBD executive secretary Bernd Hüttemann said the diversity of the alliance’s members showed how widely the EU’s importance was recognised in the country. “BDI, DGB and the environmental groups have different priorities but all call for a much more ambitious EU budget,” he said. The EU’s value to Germany could not only be determined by tallying budget items, Hüttemann argued, adding that the signatories had recognised that “national answers alone are insufficient.”
In a separate statement, environmental NGO Germanwatch said that the planned budget cuts put the EU’s climate targets at risk and undermine its resilience to future challenges. Merz’s goal of a “fundamentally modernised” EU budget would effectively mean lower contributions and a reduction in the EU's capacity to act, making competitiveness and resilience “pawns in the negotiations,” said Germanwatch chief policy officer Jennifer Tollmann.
The cuts proposed by the Irish presidency include lower funding for the EU’s competitiveness fund and for international cooperation and crisis response, Tollmann said. “Investments in competitiveness remain lacking while Europeans have to cope with and pay for the consequences of climate change,” she added.