Brussels, 18/07/2013 (Agence Europe) - Next week, European Commissioner for Regional Policy Johannes Hahn is to present a revision of the regulation instituting the European Union solidarity fund (EUSF), in order to provide regions which have suffered natural disasters with much faster and more efficient assistance.
Since 2002, the EUSF has been able to respond to some 50 disasters in Europe, from flooding to earthquakes, channelling total financial aid of €3.2 billion so far. However this reconstruction or victim support aid sometimes takes time to be get through and it is not always easy for the regions to work out whether their situation is eligible for EUSF support. The European Court of Auditors also flagged up problems with this fund in a report presented in February of this year, particularly in the framework of the earthquake in the region of Abruzzo in Italy (see EUROPE 10793).
Since then, the Commission has already started a revision of the regulation. This revision aimed to focus not so much on the method of financing, but more on the legal framework, to ensure that the conditions for eligibility are clearer. The revised measures which will be proposed should also make it possible to react and pay compensation more quickly, by means of a simplified approval procedure. Further measures should also ensure that the member states put risk prevention strategies in place. However, this point may still be discussed at a meeting of the College of Commissioners on Wednesday 24 July. (MD/transl.fl)