@prettybird Ireland, after many years of being a net recipient of EU funds, have, for a number of years, been a net contributor
My definition of a net contributor is:
When a member's cumulative payments to the EU exceed the cumulative payments received from the EU, taking into account inflation, the member is then a net contributor.
From 1973 to 2018. Ireland received over 40 billion.
Contributions (difference between amountS paid to the EU and amounts received from the EU), in millions, were made as follows. Link is:
EU Funding – Tuesday, 7 Nov 2023 – Parliamentary Questions (33rd Dáil) – Houses of the Oireachtas
2013 - 53
2014 - 266
2015 - 169
2016 - 401
2017 - 237
2018 - 513
2019 - 500
2020 - 432
2021 - 964
2022 - 792 linear forecast
2023 - 872 linear forecast
Total (excluding inflation) is 5015 Billion. A long way short of 40 billion. So, if it takes 11 years to repay 5 billion, it would Approx. 77 years to repay 40 billion, which is 2101.
Include inflation at an average of 5% and assume that net contributions for the year grow at a rate of 20% per year (optimistic), it would be 2044 before Ireland breaks even with the EU.
On that basis, I would say that Ireland is a contributor, but not yet a net contributor.
Politicians of course like to ignore it was 40 years before Ireland made any contributions to the EU and play the card that once contributions to the EU begin, they immediately become a net contributor.
A bit like taking out a mortgage for 750K in January 2024, making the first repayment in February 2024 and saying you don't owe the bank anything!