The European Commission adopted on Thursday 30 April a proposal to mobilise 279 million euros in financial assistance to Portugal, Spain, Italy and Austria following natural disasters in 2019. The aid comes from the EU Solidarity Fund.
The Commission has also presented a draft amending budgetary plan (number four for 2020) enabling this 279 million euros aid from the EU Solidarity Fund to be mobilised.
This aid package is divided as follows: 211.7 million euros for Italy (floods in Venice); 56.7 million euros for Spain (floods in September 2019 in Valencia, Murcia, Castilla-La Mancha and Andalucia); 8.2 million euros for Portugal (Hurricane Lorenzo); 2.3 million euros for Austria (floods, especially in Carinthia and East Tyrol).
The European Parliament and the EU Council must approve the proposal for EU Solidarity Fund aid. Once the Commission’s proposal has been approved, the financial aid can be paid out.
The Solidarity Fund does not only intervene after natural disasters. As a matter of fact, since 1 April 2020, its scope has been extended to cover assistance in the event of public health emergencies, such as the current coronavirus pandemic (see EUROPE 12475/2). Italy has just made a request for the aid. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)