The European Commission's future recovery plan will have to reflect the right balance between, on the one hand, the immediate need to help European companies cope with the economic impact of Covid-19 and, on the other hand, the obligation to meet the EU's long-term climate goals, said Commission Executive Vice-President for Economic Affairs Valdis Dombrovskis on Friday 15 May in a debate with members of the European Parliament's Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE).
“What we do must be consistent, among other things, with our climate objectives (climate neutrality by 2050) but at the same time, we must also think about the immediate issue of people needing jobs, needing income”, said the Vice-President.
In response to concerns by some MEPs about the EU's ability to steer recovery towards the green and digital switchover, Dombrovskis assured that the Commission is examining how to guarantee that national recovery policies are aligned with EU policies, including the green and digital switchover.
A combination of loans and grants. On the amount of the recovery plan and its composition (loans versus grants), the Latvian did not provide more details than those unveiled by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday (see EUROPE 12486/2).
He simply pointed out that the plan will be a combination of loans and subsidies, with “a substantial part” being subsidies, while stating that it will be a “substantial reinforcement of the EU budget ”. He added: “Something we are using as a benchmark is the possibility to raise the EU budget headroom to 2% of EU GNI ”.
He did not provide a more precise date for the submission of the plan, simply pointing out that it should take place before the end of the month.
A microeconomic assessment. Asked about the need to prioritise certain sectors and regions more affected than others by the coronavirus crisis, the Vice-President assured that the Commission was currently assessing financial needs at macroeconomic level, but also at microeconomic level, in order to identify the hardest hit sectors.
Citing tourism, the automotive industry and the cultural sector, he said that the recovery plan will be accompanied by these “needs assessments".
Finally, questioned on the possibility of reviewing the rules of the Stability and Growth Pact, Mr Dombrovskis recalled the temporary nature of the suspension of these rules through the recent activation of the general escape clause (see EUROPE 12452/1). “We will return to the normal rules of Stability and Growth Pact once the crisis will be over”, he said. (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)