Cyprus president calls for debate on shorter EU budget
Nikos Christodoulides suggested a three- or four-year spending plan, although EU law requires a minimum of five years.
Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides has urged EU countries to consider shortening the bloc’s budget cycle from seven years to three or four. Speaking alongside the Brussels summit on 15 October 2026, he suggested a shorter plan could be easier for some governments to accept.
Christodoulides argued that uncertainty about future needs made long-term planning difficult, citing Covid and the war in Ukraine. However, EU law sets a minimum budget duration of five years, and every budget since 1993 has covered seven.
The roughly €2 trillion spending plan needs unanimous backing from the EU’s 27 members. Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands are among countries seeking a smaller budget. A separate group of 17 countries, known as the friends of cohesion, opposes substantial reductions in agricultural and regional funding.
Christodoulides also said Spain’s November election had made a political agreement before the end of 2026 less likely. Polls indicate that Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez could lose to the centre-right and far-right, potentially pushing agreement into 2027.
He expected the final budget could be 10 per cent or 11 per cent below the European Commission’s proposal. The Irish government has proposed an 8 per cent reduction.
