"Strasbourg Calling" MEP Tsvetelina Penkova: A little over 50% of EU funds under the Recovery Plans have been invested

MEP Tsvetelina Penkova

Photo: Irina Nedeva

"The approach currently being proposed creates preconditions for redirecting funds from one program to another, which is dangerous for some of the key social policies, such as the cohesion policy," said Tsvetelina Penkova, MEP from the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament and a member of the EP Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, in an interview with BNR (Bulgarian National Radio) regarding the adoption of the EP budget committee's report, which sends a message to the European Commission to abandon the current model and not to divide the long-term budget of the EU (known as its multiannual financial framework) by individual categories.

According to her, Bulgaria's stance is rather skeptical or negative toward this approach. She explained that this means some policies, which are extremely important for Bulgaria and the region, will be merged into a national plan, and decisions on how the funds are allocated will be made through unclear mechanisms - in other words, there will be no separate budget lines for each program.

"This sets a precedent. When conditions are created that allow funds to be taken from these key social policies and redirected to other types of priorities, it raises the question of whether they are actually that important, whether they hold such significance, whether they should retain the same weight in the European budget. We must be very cautious to avoid such precedents, which could seriously harm countries like Bulgaria in the future. This does not diminish the importance and necessity of funding and focusing more on defense and security priorities. When we talk about defense and security, we should consider their potential for developing an industrial base, not just envision armament or a pan-European army," the MEP noted in an interview for the BNR's Horizon channel in the radio studios in Strasbourg.

MEP Tsvetelina Penkova and BNR journalist Irina Nedeva in at the EP radio studio in Strasbourg

Tsvetelina Penkova emphasized that excessive dependence in various sectors makes us vulnerable to geopolitical processes that are unpredictable and surprising. She believes that an autonomous industry must be developed and added that a key focus is placed on dual-use technologies.

According to her, the data shows that the mechanism for absorbing and investing the substantial funds available through the Recovery and Resilience Plans has not been effective. Just over 50% of the EU funds available for member states to invest have actually been absorbed, she pointed out. She clarified that some countries have done better - with absorption rates near 60% - but others are below 10%.

The deadlines for these projects expire in 2026, the MEP reminded. She noted that this indicates that the mechanisms in place are not sufficiently clear or administratively simplified for countries to take full advantage of them.

"To me, it is worrying when we use an unsuccessful instrument and try to apply it to such an important long-term budget - this one is for seven years, and the next framework starts in 2028. We're making decisions here that will come into force in three years and remain valid for another seven. That’s a 10-year horizon we need to secure with financing that must reach every region and every European citizen."

Tsvetelina Penkova also commented on the recent power outage in Spain and the lessons learned from the failure. She explained that a technical defect caused a complete system collapse due to the large mix of renewable energy sources, which could not be compensated by base load energy sources. In her view, if Spain’s energy mix had been more balanced, these failures wouldn’t have occurred.

She also highlighted Europe’s significant efforts in diversifying natural gas suppliers. What must now be decided, she said, is whether we are willing to make long-term investments to develop alternative infrastructure for gas supply from different sources. Penkova expressed her belief that realism and pragmatism will prevail, and noted that a shift in priorities is becoming evident.

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Photos: Irina Nedeva, Rositsa Petkova

English publication: Rositsa Petkova

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