The 2009 report on the EU budget contains interesting tables about the net balance (Euro per capita) of individual member states with the EU. Luxembourg is by far the biggest beneficiary but it is a small country with a big presence of European institutions so the figures are distorted. This can be seen when column 5 (administration) is deducted from the amounts on page 57 of the report (see link below).
The other country figures also give interesting reading, however. I am interested in the states joining in 2004 which started with a low balance - all the Eastern Europeans progressed well but their development was different. Hungary started very low (all comparisons in % of GDP) but has now the most positive balance among Slovakia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic and Poland. The figures of Malta showed a steep decline, Cyprus is even in minus (I assume that the assistance to the Turkish part of the island is not included). As the last year counted is still 2009, the situation of Romania and Bulgaria who joined in 2007 cannot be judged but if they continue the trend, they can progress well.
The table summarising the balances by year and by member state is on page 86 of
http://ec.europa.eu/budget//library/biblio/publications/2009/fin_report/fin_report_09_en.pdf
Other sites about the same topic:
Further financial publications and also "myth-busters" can be found on:
(the label points ot the financial report, the publication above).
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