‘Cut!! Paris budget. Berlin budget. Please!! Brussels budget’. On 11 February 2004, German cartoonist Klaus Stuttmann takes an ironic look at the reaction of French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder to the criticism levelled by European Commission President Romano Prodi, who is calling on the two countries to manage their national budgets more efficiently to avoid returning to an excessive deficit. As the EU’s main contributors, France and Germany do not appreciate this rebuke from Brussels; instead, the two countries are in favour of a reduction of the EU budget ceiling.