Paying for the virus may push Ireland toward the EU frugal five
A landmark agreement was concluded earlier this month in Brussels on an EU coronavirus response. It was remarkable how little comment there was on how the enormous stimulus, valued at some €750bn, would be paid for. This may be because in true EU fashion the bill has been kicked down the road.
The EU has three main sources of income. The first of these are duties and levies, of which the most important are customs duties. Customs duties are taxes paid by importers on goods brought in from outside the EU. Even though national governments collect customs duties at their ports and airports, they merely act as handling agents for the EU. Some 80% of all customs duties collected go straight to EU coffers, with the balance being retained by the individual member countries as a kind of handling fee.
