The Možemo MEP also met with Istrian winemakers and vegetable growers, to whom he presented the Greens' submission to the EU Court of Justice regarding the damages that the MERCOSUR agreement could inflict on European and Croatian farmers.
Pazin, May 15, 2026 - "There must be no programming of EU funds for the next seven-year budget without cities and municipalities genuinely sitting at the table. When planning which school, which kindergarten, which road – it cannot be merely a formality. We demand that the EU create a system for planning EU funds with clear participation from local authorities across every member state, regardless of their political affiliation.", stated at a press conference held today in Pazin by Gordan Bosanac, Možemo MEP and shadow rapporteur for the Greens / EFA group for the new budget in the Committee on Regional Development.
Speaking about the new budget, he also said that the European Parliament proposes authorizing the European Commission to withhold funds from states that do not comply. The proposal has so far received support from groups across the political spectrum.
In Pazin, Bosanac met with Mayor Suzana Jašić and city department heads, local farmers, and students of civic education and the school and community (ŠIZ) program from Juraj Dobrila Gymnasium and Vocational School – an EU Ambassador School. Discussions revolved around the new European Union budget and what it means for small towns like Pazin.
The European Parliament believes that the new EU budget must be ten percent larger than the Commission's proposal. The total framework amounts to approximately two trillion euros, but 200 billion has already been reserved for repaying COVID bonds. Parliament proposes that this amount be excluded from regular budgetary ceilings to free up funds for development policies.
To fund the budget, the Greens propose stronger taxation of large digital companies that extract profits from the EU, and the introduction of a European corporate tax on multinational companies that profit from the single market.
Bosanac discussed bureaucracy as a persistent issue in utilizing EU funds with local farmers. He reminded them that some of the burden does not originate from Brussels – some states add it themselves, so simplification is also the responsibility of national governments, not just European institutions.
He also discussed the Mercosur agreement with local winemakers and vegetable growers. They highlighted their fear of an influx of cheap products, and winemakers specifically warned of concrete cases: counterfeit Istrian Malvasia wines somehow arriving in the EU with original labels. The Greens group voted against the agreement and referred it to the European Court of Justice.
"If we cannot have strong inspections, we cannot enter into such agreements," Bosanac concluded.
