EU budget helps boost investments, competitiveness and jobs, Commission evaluation report shows

The EU budget helps boost investments, contributes to the competitiveness of the EU economy and creates new jobs, this year’s European Commission evaluation report on results of EU finances shows. The report, published annually as part of the EU budget discharge procedure, shows that every euro invested by the EU budget in the pilot phase of the ‘Project Bond Initiative’ has attracted 9 euro of additional funds, that the European Regional Development Fund and the Cohesion Fund contributed to the creation of 770,000 new jobs across Europe between 2007 and 2013, and that thanks to EU funding some five million households got access to broadband internet between 2007 and 2013. This makes it easier for people in less developed regions to be connected and to do business. More examples of EU budget success stories are available in the report. The report complements the ‘Synthesis report’ on the Commission’s management achievements of 2014, presented earlier this month.