The European Parliament,

–  having regard to Article 314 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

–  having regard to Article 106a of the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community,

–  having regard to Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 July 2018 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union, amending Regulations (EU) No 1296/2013, (EU) No 1301/2013, (EU) No 1303/2013, (EU) No 1304/2013, (EU) No 1309/2013, (EU) No 1316/2013, (EU) No 223/2014, (EU) No 283/2014, and Decision No 541/2014/EU and repealing Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012(1), and in particular Article 44 thereof,

–  having regard to the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2021, as definitively adopted on 18 December 2020(2),

–  having regard to Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 of 17 December 2020 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027(3) (the ‘MFF Regulation’),

–  having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 December 2020 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management, as well as on new own resources, including a roadmap towards the introduction of new own resources(4) (the ‘Interinstitutional Agreement’),

–  having regard to Council Decision (EU, Euratom) 2020/2053 of 14 December 2020 on the system of own resources of the European Union and repealing Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom(5),

–  having regard to Draft amending budget No 4/2021, which the Commission adopted on 2 July 2021 (COM(2021)0444),

–  having regard to the position on Draft amending budget No 4/2021 which the Council adopted on 21 September 2021 and forwarded to Parliament on the following day (11796/2021 – C9‑0363/2021),

–  having regard to Rules 94 and 96 of its Rules of Procedure,

–  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A9-0268/2021),

A.  whereas the purpose of Draft amending budget No 4/2021 is to update the revenue side of the budget to take account of the entry into force on 1 June 2021 of Council Decision (EU, Euratom) 2020/2053, applicable from 1 January 2021, the updated own resources forecasts for the 2021 budget agreed by the Advisory Committee on Own Resources on 26 May 2021, and to update other revenues such as the United Kingdom contribution, fines and other,

B.  whereas the main changes introduced by Council Decision (EU, Euratom) 2020/2053 are: the increased own resources ceilings, an increased rate of collection costs for customs duties for the Member States (25 % instead of 20 % under Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom(6), a uniform VAT call rate without exception and a simplified definition of the VAT base, a new own resource based on non-recycled plastic packaging waste; and modified gross reductions in the Gross National Income (GNI)-based own resource for Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and Sweden,

C.  whereas the Commission’s revenue projections are based on the Commission 2021 Spring economic forecast(7), which predicts that the Union economy will return to its pre-crisis level by the end of 2022,

1.  Takes note of Draft amending budget No 4/2021 as submitted by the Commission;

2.  Underlines the Parliament’s particular commitment to the new own resources and their introduction over the duration of the MFF 2021-2027, following the roadmap established in the Interinstitutional Agreement;

3.  Approves the Council position on Draft amending budget No 4/2021;

4.  Instructs its President to declare that Amending budget No 4/2021 has been definitively adopted and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;

5.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

(1) OJ L 193, 30.7.2018, p. 1. (2) OJ L 93, 17.3.2021. (3) OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 11. (4) OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 28. (5) OJ L 424, 15.12.2020, p. 1. (6) Council Decision 2014/335/EU, Euratom of 26 May 2014 on the system of own resources of the European Union (OJ L 168, 7.6.2014, p. 105). (7) European Commission, 2021, European Economic Forecast Spring 2021, European Economy, Institutional Paper 149.