EU cohesion policy post-2027: why and how to enhance flexibility
The EU’s recent crises and complex geopolitical landscape means the EU budget should be rethought in terms of crisis management and increasing spending demands. Despite these pressures, future Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) discussions are more likely to focus on reallocating existing funds rather than expanding the EU budget. This situation has put cohesion policy, the EU budget’s largest spending item, […]
Performance framework for the EU budget
Performance-based budgeting has latterly become integral to the governance of EU spending. This study looks at the principles behind this approach and explores how it is being implemented in Cohesion Policy and the Recovery and Resilience Facility. The analysis reveals marked differences between how performancebased budgeting functions in these two frameworks and sheds light on […]
Lessons learned from the implementation of crisis response tools at EU level
As the EU grapples with successive crises, there is mounting pressure to develop swift and robust crisis response mechanisms. This study, divided into two parts, aims to enrich this discourse by examining four instruments – SURE, CRII, CRII+ and REACT-EU – introduced as a response to the pandemic. This paper forms the output of the […]
Where the (euro) buck stops
The EU budget’s current financial architecture is inappropriate to effectively address the various crises it has faced in recent years. This CEPS Policy Brief presents some immediate actions to raise overall funding and to address the impacts of the war in Ukraine with unspent EU funds. It also calls for longer term reforms to support […]
Steering and Monitoring the Recovery and Resilience Plans
This paper provides an extensive account of the procedures and rules of the Recovery and Resilience Facility. It analyses the European Commission’s guidance and offers insights into how the process is being steered and how the implementation of the NRRPs will be monitored. The aim is to highlight not only the opportunities, but also the pitfalls of […]
Avoiding the Main Risks in the Recovery Plans of Member States
This is the first of a series of reports dedicated to the preparation and implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility of the EU. It sets out some of the main risks to the success of the recovery programmes, such as a lack of focus and mistargeting, maintaining unsustainable sectors, delays in implementation, and the […]