Open Europe Gives You FACTS!

Open Europe has [recently] published a new briefing looking at the arguments for and against the EU’s continued involvement in regional spending via the structural funds in Britain and other member states. Between 2007 and 2013, Britain will pay in around £30bn to the EU’s so-called structural and cohesion funds, but get back just under £9bn. Under the present system, 70% of the UK’s contribution to the structural funds goes to other member states, 25% is redistributed within the same UK region in which the funds were raised, and only 5% is re-distributed between richer and poorer regions in the UK. Some of the poorest regions are short-changed by the funds in that they pay in more than they get out. For example, the West Midlands, which has the UK’s lowest disposable income per capita pays £3.55 for every £1 it gets back.