Spain says Britain should make concessions on EU budget

Britain should make concessions on its disputed EU budget rebate in order for the bloc to come up with a spending plan for 2007-2013, the Spanish foreign minister said today.

Miguel Angel Moratinos said that following a failed attempt in June to agree on such a blueprint, the European Union needed to prove it could show leadership and achieve greater technological development and for this it must have a budget.

EU heads of state and government are to meet in Brussels next month to try to hammer out a deal.

Moratinos said: “I would say to our British friends that they seek an intermediate ground. It is not a question of giving or taking away but seeking equilibrium, a fair distribution,” he said at a current affairs forum.

Budget talks collapsed in June over farm spending and Britain’s budget rebate, triggering a nasty spat between France and Britain. It was won by former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and compensates Britain for the small amount it reaps in EU farm subsidies because it has relatively few farmers.

Prime Minister Tony Blair has refused to give it up unless the EU scales back agricultural subsidies which benefit France in particular. He argues that agricultural spending, which accounts for about 40 per cent of the EU budget, squanders money that should be spent on science, technology and education.