Nelson de Souza was referring to the commission’s proposal for the cohesion policy to be reduced by 7% as well as cut-backs in the common agricultural policy.


He said the government would not give up and would continue to negotiate using all available tools and, if necessary, until the last night of the European Council negotiations.


Nelson added that the current proposal, however, was a “better deal” compared to the previous framework.


The European Commission proposed on 1 June last year a grant of around €7.6 billion under the multiannual financial framework 2021-2027, below the previous budget of €8.1 billion, with a slight rise in direct payments and cuts in rural development.


At current prices, for the multiannual financial framework 2021-2027, a budget of €4.2 billion is forecast for the first pillar of the common agricultural policy (CAP) and €3.4 billion for the second.


The commission proposed direct payments to farmers higher than €60,000 to face deductions and to be limited to €100,000 per farm, with states being forced to reserve 2% of the amount received for payments to help young farmers.