Plan to double the Commission’s annual communications budget

Question for written answer  E-002003/2023
to the Commission
Rule 138
Jadwiga Wiśniewska (ECR)

According to media reports, the Commission is planning to double its annual communications budget from EUR 30 million to EUR 60 million from 2024, just in time for the European Parliament election campaign. In view of the need for EU assistance to help war-torn Ukraine, as well as the ‘putinflation’ caused by the war, these plans are ill-advised, as the Commission wants to shift resources at the expense of citizens from funds for agriculture, research, migration or the Erasmus student exchange programme, among others, and use them to double spending on PR.

I therefore ask for clarification:

• 1)Does the Commission plan to double its communications budget? If so, what rationale behind and motivation for such a decision?
• 2)What activities would be financed by the newly increased PR budget?

Submitted:22.6.2023