Across Party Lines: Social Fund Faces Joint Parliamentary Defence

Two leading MEPs have launched Parliament’s challenge to European Commission plans to merge the European Social Fund (ESF) into broader national spending programmes, warning that the EU’s main anti-poverty tool could be “diluted beyond recognition.”

David Casa (EPP) and Marit Maij (S&D), co-rapporteurs on the next ESF, met stakeholders in Brussels as talks on the 2028–2034 EU budget intensify. The Commission proposes combining 14 funds, including the ESF, cohesion and agricultural funds, into single national partnership plans. While designed to cut red tape, critics say it would remove around 40% of spending from parliamentary oversight.

Casa insisted the ESF must remain a “stand-alone fund with a clear social mission,” while Maij warned integration risks weakening the visibility and impact of programmes supporting people and communities. The stakes are high for Malta, which currently receives €124.4 million for initiatives run by Jobsplus, MCAST, the University of Malta, Caritas and other NGOs.

Under the Commission’s plan, member states would dedicate at least 14% of their national envelopes to social objectives, but MEPs say this lacks the safeguards of the current ring-fenced funding. Parliament’s employment committee has already signalled broad opposition, with votes on alternatives expected in the coming months.