logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2019
25m 38s

Is the EU a waste of money?

European Investment Bank
About this episode

In this episode of Monster Under the Bed, we bust the idea that the EU is something to scare people with, and the myth that it costs us too much


In the last few years, the EU budget has become a major topic of public discourse – whether in the media, or in our neighbourhood cafes. Something that once felt so remote has gone mainstream.

A lot of that is due to Brexit, and a lot of the conversations have had to do with specifically how much the European Union costs us, and our countries. So we decided to figure out whether there’s any truth in the often-heard exclamations that the EU costs us too much.


In this episode you’ll find out (without a lot of math or statistics):


·        What is the EU budget? How is it decided, collected and spent? How big is it?

·        How much does each European contribute to the EU budget?

·        Why do some countries pay more into the EU budget than others do?

·        What is cohesion?

·        Why do people believe some of the myths about the EU floating around, and how can we use a moment of crisis and turn it into an opportunity?


At the European Investment Bank, the EU bank, we have all kinds of experts, who can challenge our assumptions, notions and prejudices about anything from climate to cybercrime and from healthcare to urbanisation. In this episode you will hear our Vice-President Alexander Stubb, as well as Mariusz Krukowski, the European Investment Bank’s senior policy adviser who works on EU budget issues and Brexit, among other things.


So that you don’t miss any episodes, subscribe to Monster Under the Bed on your phone’s podcast app. You can do it in iTunes, Acast and many other podcast platforms as well. In each episode of the podcast, we fight one imaginary monster under the bed and win the battle for a more sensible way of doing things.


Let us know if you can think of a monster we should expose on future episodes. Get in touch on Twitter @AllarTankler


This episode contains audio content provided by the Audiovisual service of the European Commission (©European Union, 2013).


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Nov 2019
The digital pixie dust clean-up
When we speak of the virtual world and storing things in ‘the cloud’, we seldom stop to realize that our digital climate impact is not virtual at all Many people see digitalisation as this magical pixie dust that Tinker Bell sprinkles on old industries to make them all environmen ... Show More
22m 52s
Oct 2019
Do you need arms and legs?
In schools and in the workplace disability training makes for better inclusion—and lets everyone draw on the strengths of people who overcame difficulties most of us never facedIs disability a state of mind? According to Bebe Vio, the young Italian Paralympic champion, you don’t ... Show More
18m 40s
Oct 2019
Forget careers. What are your competencies?
In this episode of Monster Under the Bed, we bust the ‘you are what you know’ education myth and discover that, in fact, you are the things you know how to doIn the grim Victorian building where I went to school, we learned everything by rote. It worked out okay for me. But the f ... Show More
20m 20s
Recommended Episodes
Aug 2018
Project finance: Can you drive a special purpose vehicle?
From hospitals to schools and toll roads, project finance can be a valuable way to handle risk. Here’s how project finance works. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. 
19m 2s
Oct 2017
Digital Economy and the Fourth Industrial Revolution
  The DIGITAL ECONOMY consists of all the transactions carried out over digital infrastructure or using digital technologies, including e-commerce. In fact, anything with an “e-” in front of it is part of the digital economy. It’s not just Facebook and Amazon, but even traditiona ... Show More
25m 28s
Oct 2023
150: The Future Of Finance
The face of finance has evolved considerably of late. From changing financial architecture and payment applications through to regulatory developments and the impact of AI, all of which have major implications for banking’s business models.Alex Brazier, Deputy Head of the BlackRo ... Show More
15m 21s
Jan 2021
493. Insights: Partnerships in finance: building the new banking ecosystem
With the help of fintechs, BaaS, third party providers and even M&As, banking as we know it is changing. Partnerships are proving to be the key to unlocking what the future of the banking ecosystem will look like. In this episode, Adam Davis sits down with a panel of guests for a ... Show More
46m 18s
Sep 2022
EP7 The Importance Of Open Banking | Mirna Sleiman, Founder & CEO of Fintech Galaxy
Open banking describes the process of banks and other traditional financial institutions opening up data for regulated providers to access, use and share with their customers' permission. In an age where most of us are concerned about our data privacy, this might sound unsaf ... Show More
21m 44s
Aug 2022
EP5 "Decentralised Finance & Financial Inclusion" | Devid Jegerson, Executive VP At The National Bank of Fujairah
1.7 billion people globally are underbanked. In the MENA region more specifically, one in five adults do not have a bank account. The impact? In the words of one of our former guests, Andrew Gold, "If you don't have a bank account, you are now cut off from so many of those f ... Show More
25m 25s
Feb 2021
500. Brexit, blockchain and big techs - the journey so far
Between various office moves, company growth and of course, the pandemic, 4+ years and 500 episodes has whizzed by. In honour of the momentous occasion, David Brear, Simon Taylor and Jason Bates have come back together to look back on the biggest fintech and financial services to ... Show More
1h 12m
Sep 2021
Money Talks: Alice in DeFi-land
After a painstakingly slow start, the financial system is now digitising fast. Alice Fulwood, The Economist’s US finance correspondent, and host Rachana Shanbhogue explore the different emerging models shaping the future of money and payments.  With David Marcus, head of Facebook ... Show More
31m 25s
Sep 2021
Money Talks: Alice in DeFi-land
After a painstakingly slow start, the financial system is now digitising fast. Alice Fulwood, The Economist’s US finance correspondent, and host Rachana Shanbhogue explore the different emerging models shaping the future of money and payments.  With David Marcus, head of Facebook ... Show More
31m 25s