Chancellor keeps mum on Polish contributions
The German Chancellor has visited Poland and said that he fully expects that country to be invited to become a member of the European Union, along with nine other new member states, at the forthcoming Copenhagen summit in December. However, the Chancellor refused to be drawn on whether or not Poland would be a net contributor to the EU budget.
Rumours have been flying all over Central Europe that this will be the case, and it certainly seems inevitable that some industrialised countries (such as the Czech Republic and Hungary) may be net contributors, especially if the level of agricultural subsidies paid to these countries is only 25% of what is currently paid to EU farmers. But EU leaders are evidently trying to keep a lid on making any public statements on this matter until the very last minute, to give opposition as little time as possible to muster support.
Source:
European Foundation Intelligence Digest Issue No.154; 7th November 2002