Where does the EU get its money?

Member countries pay a contribution to the EU every year, depending on how big and how wealthy they are. The EU currently spends about 1 per cent of the wealth of its member countries.

Some of the money Britain contributes is spent on EU projects in Britain. But most of the richer countries, including Britain, pay more into the EU than they get back. The poorer countries receive funds to help their economies catch up.

Britain gets a rebate to make payment fairer. This was agreed in 1984 and it cannot be changed without the agreement of the British Government and Parliament.

Even with this rebate, over the years Britain has paid more overall than countries of similar size and wealth like France and Italy. This is mainly due to excessive spending by the EU on agriculture -- a spending pattern that was set before Britain joined the EU.

(Courtesy:www.fco.gov.uk)

First Published: Sep 06, 2005 15:28 IST