2014 EU budget at a glance : Pocket notebook

Some 94 % of the EU budget is spent on projects in EU Member States and beyond. Each of the 508 million Europeans benefits in one way or another from the EU budget. It helps millions of students, thousands of researchers, cities, regions and NGOs. The EU budget contributes to healthier and safer food; new and better roads, railways and airports; a cleaner environment; higher security at the EU’s external borders; increased student mobility; educational help; social protection and cultural exchanges; etc. The EU also brings help and humanitarian assistance all over the globe. The EU budget pools the resources of Member States and brings economies of scale. It finances actions that Member States cannot fund on their own or which they can fund more effectively by working together, for example in the fields of energy, transport, information and communication technologies, climate change and research. For example, a project of such magnitude as the European satellite navigation system Galileo could not be financed by a single Member State alone. The EU budget is mostly an investment budget. Unlike national budgets, the EU budget does not fund defence expenditure or social protection. It does not pay for the running of schools or the work of the police, as national budgets do