On 26 June 2026, the Council of the European Union agreed a partial mandate for negotiations with the European Parliament on a regulation establishing a budget expenditure tracking and performance framework for EU programmes and activities. The mandate excludes provisions on the 'do no significant harm' principle, gender equality, the Single Gateway, and information/communication/visibility, which remain in brackets for further discussion.
The proposed regulation aims to create uniform rules for monitoring budget spending, reporting on programme performance, and evaluating EU programmes and activities. It seeks to reduce administrative burden by standardising expenditure tracking and performance reporting, supporting the Commission's target of cutting administrative burden by at least 25% for all companies and at least 35% for SMEs.
Under the partial mandate, the Commission would be required to provide technical guidance on the 'do no significant harm' principle by 1 November 2026, after consulting Member States. Similarly, guidance on gender mainstreaming methodology and detailed definitions of performance indicators and their methodology must be delivered by the same date. A test version of the Single Gateway must be made available to Member States by 1 January 2027.
Member States would be required to carry out evaluations of measures implemented under shared management, including at least one interim evaluation of their plans. The Commission must publish a mid-term implementation report for each programme or activity and conduct a retrospective evaluation of the Horizon Europe programme.
The partial mandate leaves key horizontal provisions unresolved, signalling potential friction with the European Parliament, which may push for stronger environmental and gender equality safeguards. The regulation's impact on stakeholders includes reduced administrative costs for businesses and SMEs, but also new reporting obligations for national authorities and programme beneficiaries. The Commission faces tight deadlines to produce technical guidance, while the exclusion of the 'do no significant harm' principle could delay alignment with the EU's sustainable finance framework.
Negotiations with the European Parliament are expected to begin in the coming months, with the final regulation likely to shape the implementation of the next Multiannual Financial Framework.