Parliament wants a timely remedy for the 2013 budget shortfalls and is ready to intensify negotiations on the Multi-annual Financial Framework (MFF). These were the key conclusions of this morning's European Parliament Budgets Committee meeting.

Parliament's Budgets Committee gave its support on Tuesday to the two-track negotiations on the EU long-term budget (MFF) and an amending budget for 2013, which was agreed Monday evening in a meeting of the Presidents of the European Parliament, Council and Commission.

The President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz, the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and the President of the European Commission met in Brussels on 6 May to discuss budgetary matters. They agreed on key points on the Draft Amending Budget 2013, which paves the way for negotiations to start on the Multiannual Financial Framework. The details of the framework for the negotiations are set out below.

Additional EU funding totalling €70 million to meet humanitarian needs in Syria, Mali, the Sahel region and Chad. was approved by the Budgets Committee on Wednesday.

Parliament refused to approve the Council of Ministers' 2011 accounts in a vote on Wednesday, citing a lack of cooperation. Other EU institutions and agencies were granted budget management discharges (approval) for 2011. Parliament also recommended moving the EU Police College from the UK to the Netherlands.

The Commission proposal to settle only part of the EU's €16.2 billion debt rolled over from 2012 threatens the EU with insolvency later in 2013, said Budgets Committee chair Alain Lamassoure (EPP, FR) on Wednesday. The Commission, Parliament and Council agreed last year to settle all bills left over from 2012.

The Copenhagen-based European Environment Agency was the only EU agency whose management of EU funds in 2011 was not approved by the Budgetary Control Committee on Tuesday. In other votes, the European Commission and other EU institutions and agencies passed the committee's budget "discharge" test, but the decision on whether to approve the Council of Ministers' bookkeeping was once again postponed.

Täna võeti vastu resolutsioon, millega antakse parlamendile mandaat pidada läbirääkimisi ELi 2014-2020 eelarve üle liikmesriikide eesistuja Iirimaaga. Parlament lükkab Euroopa Ülemkogu 8. veebruari järeldused nende praegusel kujul tagasi. EP saadikud soovivad, et eelarve oleks paindlikum ja efektiivsem.

Unpaid bills from 2012 and 2013 should not pollute next year's budget with illegal debt, says Parliament in a resolution adopted on Wednesday. MEPs insist that legitimate invoices from last year and this year must be settled as soon as possible so that 2014, the first year under the new budget framework, can start with a clean slate.

Excessive austerity is stifling growth, yet the EU cannot simply spend its way out of the crisis, MEPs admitted in Wednesday's debate on efforts to revive the EU economy, held with a view to the Spring European Council starting on Thursday. Several groups also criticised recent changes made in Hungary's constitution and called on the Council to add these to its agenda.