Brussels, 04/07/2013 (Agence Europe) - The European Parliament wants the EU solidarity fund (EUSF) to be used more swiftly and effectively in regions affected by natural disasters. Countries eligible for compensation from the European fund generally do not receive any funding until they have gone through a long administrative procedure.
On Wednesday 3 July, MEPs adopted a resolution underlining the need to simplify the rules governing the way the fund works. They also insisted that funding for the EUSF must be paid out to the disaster-stricken areas without losing time, and not several quarters later.
“Unfortunately, it is easier and quicker for the EU to respond to a disaster on the other side of the world than to a disaster on its own territory”, criticised Marie-Thérèse Sanchez Schmidt (EPP, France). The Commission intends to propose review of the EUSF regulation along these lines shortly. Sanchez Schmidt trusts that the Council will not block it for a second time as it did in 2005. (MD/transl.jl)