Who pays for the EU and how much does it cost the UK?

The EU budget is large, complex and politically highly charged, but it is also prone to be poorly explained and understood in much of the debate on the UK and Europe. A key reason for this is that there are many ways of presenting key measures, such as how much it costs or who gains from it, allowing protagonists on different sides of the debate to seize on particular indicators to support their case.

Often, however, an opposite case can be constructed just as convincingly by using a different mix of figures, leading to confusion about the true position.

The aim of this briefing paper is both to present the facts about the revenue side of the EU budget from a UK perspective and to dispel some of the myths about it.

• Primary Source

ESO: In Focus: Brexit - The United Kingdom and the European Union http://www.europeansources.info/record/brexit-the-united-kingdom-and-the-european-union/

ESO: Background information: The UK 'rebate' on the EU budget. An explanation of the abatement and other correction mechanisms http://www.europeansources.info/record/the-uk-rebate-on-the-eu-budget-an-explanation-of-the-abatement-and-other-correction-mechanisms/

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