Take the “Next Generation EU” recovery fund which provides financing to fulfil the EU’s priorities, notably the green and digital transitions, thereby helping to avoid economic divergence and to increase resilience and potential growth. The recovery fund is disbursed to national governments on condition that it is used for making commonly agreed investments and reforms.
This arrangement could lay the groundwork for common EU policies in areas of collective interest which are underpinned by direct EU spending. Against this background, I would welcome a serious discussion about EU public goods so as to identify where the case for them is strongest and how they may be in part financed through the EU budget.