EU Budget Council

HC Deb 12 November 1996 vol 285 c161W

Mr. Matthew Banks

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the EU Budget Council meeting of 25 July. [3973]

Mr. Oppenheim

Sir Stephen Wall, the United Kingdom permanent representative to the European Union, represented the United Kingdom at the Budget Council on 25 July. The Council considered the Commission's preliminary draft budget for 1997. The

	Financial perspective ceilings1	Preliminary draft budget	Budget council draft budget
	mecu	£million	mecu	£ million	mecu	£ million
Commitment appropriations
1. EAGGF guarantee	41,805	32,698	41,805	32,698	40,805	31,916
2. Structural operations	31,477	24,620	31,477	24,620	31,477	24,620
3. Internal policies	5,603	4,382	5,523	4,320	5,255	4,110
4. External action	5,622	4,397	5,528	4,324	5,310	4,153
5. Administration	4,352	3,404	4,369	3,418	4,245	3,320
6. Reserves	1,158	906	1,158	906	1,158	906
7. Compensation	212	166	212	166	212	166
Total: Commitment appropriations	90,229	70,574	90,072	70,452	88,461	69,191
Total: Payment appropriations	85,807	67,115	84,521	66,110	81,646	63,861
1Throughout this reply the rate of £1=1.2785 ecu has been used (the rate notified in the Official Journal as prevailing on the last working day of the last month (31 October)).