Social Democrat MEP Victor Negrescu, who serves as Vice-President of the European Parliament, said on Friday that 2026 "is a decisive year for the European money available to Romania", and that the stakes are no longer just about how much money the country has at its disposal, but about how it will be turned into real results for people and the economy.
In a Facebook post, Negrescu said that at the end of last year he had a working meeting on this topic with European Commissioner for Budget Piotr Serafin.
"2026 is a decisive year for the European money available to Romania: sufficient funds for the European budget, the completion of the NRRP, negotiations on the future Multiannual Financial Framework, and Romania's ability to attract and use European funds intelligently. At the end of 2025 I had a working meeting with the European Commissioner for Budget Piotr Serafin, at a time when the stakes are no longer just about how much money we have available, but how we transform it into real results for people and the economy. My message is clear: I will continue to do everything necessary to ensure that Romania attracts as much European money as possible, but it is not enough to just tick off projects. European funds are not an accounting exercise or a meaningless absorption race," Victor Negrescu emphasized.
According to him, European funds for Romania must address structural problems, strengthen the state, the economy and local communities, and also leave something sustainable behind: infrastructure, better public services, skills, and trust.
"Romania needs prioritization, coherence and courage. Well-designed projects, quick decisions and a real link between Brussels and the reality on the ground. Our role is active and committed: rapporteur on the implementation of the NRRP, member of the European Parliament's recovery mechanism monitoring committee, rapporteur on key files of the future MFF and coordinator - within the European Social Democrats - of the working group on these topics, for concrete solutions and decisions that matter. The activity is intense, negotiations are tough, but the stakes are too high for superficiality. 2026 must not be the year in which 'we just spent money', but the year in which we built correctly," the Social Democrat MEP also said.
Comentează