Parliament gave its consent to the draft Council decision on implementing the Protocol on the financial consequences of the expiry of the ECSC Treaty and on the Research Fund for Coal and Steel by 563 votes to 44 , with 56 abstentions — a margin of 519 votes. EPP, S&D, Renew, Greens/EFA, and most of ECR voted in favour; ESN voted predominantly against; PfE and The Left were divided, with notable minorities within both groups voting against or abstaining. This is a budgetary file under the consent procedure, meaning Parliament's approval is legally required for the Council decision to proceed. The vote constitutes Parliament's formal assent, with direct budgetary consequences for the management of the Research Fund for Coal and Steel, which distributes the residual assets of the expired European Coal and Steel Community. The breadth of the majority reflected broad cross-group support from the political centre through to most of the right. Dissent was concentrated in ESN, which voted 21 against, and in portions of PfE, where several national delegations — including those from Austria, the Netherlands, Spain, Poland and Belgium — voted against their group's majority position in favour of consent.
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