French minister urges EU to channel Google penalty into budget funding
France's European Affairs minister Benjamin Hantaud is pressing Brussels to allocate the fine imposed on Google toward the EU budget and lower national contributions.
French European Affairs minister Benjamin Hantaud announced he will lobby EU officials to apply the fine levied against Google to the Union's budget, aiming to reduce the financial burden on member states. He highlighted a debate over using the revenue for extra expenditures versus lowering national contributions. Hantaud intends to discuss the matter with EU Budget Commissioner Piotr Serafin during a meeting in Paris.
France is also promoting "own resources" such as taxes on American digital giants, online gambling operators and cryptocurrency firms to fund the 2028-2034 seven-year budget. He urged reluctant governments to consider these proposals and to involve the European Parliament in the debate. The minister will attend further talks with other officials in Luxembourg later today.
Why it matters
Redirecting the Google fine could ease national budget pressures and shape future EU financing mechanisms.
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