HC Deb 05 February 1980 vol 978 c117W
Mr. Leighton

asked the Prime Minister whether it is the view of Her Majesty's Government that the amendments proposed by the EEC Assembly to the obligatory expenditure section of the EEC budget are contrary to article 137 of the Treaty of Rome.

The Prime Minister

The second subparagraph of article 203–4 of the Treaty, dealing with the budgetary powers of the Parliament, states that the European Parliament may propose to the Council modifications to the draft budget relating to expenditurenecessarily resulting from this Treaty or from acts adopted in accordance therewith commonly known as obligatory expenditure. It is therefore clear that the modifications proposed by the European Parliament to obligatory expenditure in the 1980 draft budget were entirely in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Treaty.