Press Release: Budget report 2007 confirms better management but warns time is running out for unspent funds

The latest data on EU spending shows, once again, the growing trend for higher investment in long-term economic progress and employment. The Financial Report 2007 also reveals how the first budget of the new programming period 2007-2013 and of an enlarged EU-27 saw the share of funds for new members increase, while the biggest overall recipients remained the same as 2006. High spending (almost the entire 2007 budget left EU coffers) confirms active budget management is bearing fruit. However lessons for future spending must be drawn from the unspent funds on which Member States lost out last year. Ensuring the continuous, effective absorption of all funds is vital.