Europe's budget chief sparked a fierce row with Britain on Monday over the 'Thatcher rebate' which sees billions returned to London in lieu of farm payments to France and Germany.
"The rebate for Britain has lost its original justification," European Union budget commissioner Janusz Lewandowski told German business daily Handelsblatt, arguing that income per capita in Britain has risen substantially since 1984 when the rebate was negotiated.
"My role in this business is as an honest broker," he added in anticipation of a vigorous defence from London. The British government did not shirk the issue, telling the Polish official that he was barking up the wrong tree as Brussels bids to rejig its finances for the years through to 2020.
"The UK abatement remains fully justified. It's a matter of fairness," said a British government spokesperson.
"Without the rebate, the UK's net contribution as a percentage of national income would be twice as big as France's, and one-and-a-half times bigger than Germany's. "This is because of expenditure distortions from policies such as the (Common Agricultural Policy), which still accounts for more than 40 percent of the EU budget."