Rich-poor clash resurfaces as EU leaders’ budget talks fail

EU leaders failed to agree on the bloc’s next seven-year budget, replaying the clash between rich and poor countries that has stymied the response to the euro debt crisis.

The 27 national chiefs plan another summit early next year, when northern countries, including Britain and Germany may have the upper hand in seeking to cut subsidies to less-developed southern and eastern economies clamouring for EU investment.

“Anything short of admitting that our talks have been extraordinarily complex and difficult would not reflect reality,” José Manuel Barroso, head of the European Commission, which manages the subsidy programmes, told reporters after a two-day meeting in Brussels.