VOA慢速英语:EU Agrees to $1.3 Trillion Budget

European Union countries have struggled to find common ground as they worked out a budget agreement in Belgium this month. European leaders finally had success last week. They agreed on the European Union's multiannual financial framework, or MMF, for the period from 2014 to 2020.
欧盟国家一直在努力寻找共同点。本月，他们在比利时达成了一项预算协议。上周，欧盟领导人终于取得了成功。他们在欧盟2014年到2020年期间的多年度金融框架（简称MMF）上取得了一致。

The MMF sets the EU's total spending at $1.3 trillion. That represents one percent of the total income of EU members. Members agreed to reduce total spending by over three percent for the period. This is the first time spending cuts have been made.
MMF规定欧盟的总开支为1.3万亿美元，这相当于欧盟会员国总收入的1%。成员国同意在这时期将总开支减少3%以上，这是欧盟制订的首个开支削减方案。

European Council President Herman Van Rompuy spoke after the agreement was announced. He said the compromise budget may not be perfect. But he said it should help all EU members.
欧洲理事会主席范龙佩在协议公布后发表了讲话。他说，这项妥协预算可能并不完美，但它应该会对所有欧盟成员国有所帮助。

"Our support to the most vulnerable people remains intact, so does our external action funding even despite the crisis. This budget will allow Europe to keep engaging on vital global issues such as climate change, nuclear safety and development aid."
“尽管危机继续，我们会一如既往地支持最弱势的群体，也会继续提供外部行动资金。这项预算将使欧洲参与全球重大事务，诸如气候变化、核安全和发展援助”。

German Chancellor Angela Merkel praised the long-term spending plan. She said the agreement makes policy more predictable and enables members to act in the interest of Europe.
德国总理默克尔称赞了这一长期支出计划。她表示，该协议使得政策更具可预测性，成员国也得以在欧洲利益上采取行动。

Some EU leaders have been calling for greater spending controls in their home countries. They wanted the EU to show that it is willing to cut costs.
一些欧洲领导人一直呼吁对本国的开支加强控制，他们希望欧盟做出愿意削减开支的意愿。

British Prime Minister David Cameron welcomed the agreement. Before the two-day meeting, he had threatened to veto the budget if there were no steps toward cutting spending.
英国首相卡梅伦对该协议表示了欢迎。在这次为期两天的会议之前，他曾威胁如果没有迈出削减支出的步伐，他就要投票否决这一预算方案。

"So I think the British public can be proud that we have cut the seven-year credit card limit for the European Union for the first time ever. And as a result the EU's seven-year budget will cost less than one percent of Europe's gross national income. That is also for the first time ever."
“我们首次削减了欧盟七年的信用卡授信额度，我想这样英国公众就可以很自豪了。这样欧盟的七年预算只不过占欧洲总国民收入的1%不到，这也是历史上的首次。”

The European parliament still must approve the measure. But some parliament members say it fails to deal with problems like the sharp wealth differences between rich and poor. Guy Verhofstadt from Belgium is a member of the European parliament. He does not think the measure will pass.
该措施还必须经过欧洲议会批准。但一些议员表示，该协议未能处理一些问题，象贫富之间的巨大财富差距。来自比利时的Guy Verhofstadt是欧盟议会的议员。他认为该措施无法通过。

"I don't think that we shall have a majority in the parliament to approve this proposal...we are creating a big deficit of more than 50 billion euros and that is not acceptable."
“我觉得议会上不会有多数人支持这项提议，我们的举行赤字已超过500亿欧元，这是无法接受的。”

If approved, the measure will affect 28 European Union countries. The EU says Croatia is expected to join the group in July.
如果该措施获得通过将影响到28个欧盟国家。欧盟表示，克罗地亚有望于今年7月加入欧盟。