On Wednesday 17 June, Parliament approved 279 million euros in aid from the EU Solidarity Fund (EUSF) for Portugal, Italy, Spain and Austria.
For example, Portugal will receive 8.2 million euros for the Azores, which were hit by Hurricane Lorenzo in October 2019, Spain 56.7 million euros for the floods that affected the south-east of the country in September, Italy 211.7 million euros for the massive floods in November and October, and Austria will receive 2.3 million euros for November floods in the south-west of its territory.
MEPs point out that the fund is only “a curative instrument” and that, due to climate change, natural disasters will become increasingly violent and recurrent. They therefore call for the fund to be reformed in the next Multiannual Financial Framework to take account of the future consequences of climate change. The EU Council has yet to formally adopt this aid.
Parliament supported Amending Budget No 3/2020 which enters the 2019 surplus of 3.2 billion euros into the 2020 budget.
Parliament recalls its position that “all available means and unused money in the Union budget, including the surplus, be used to swiftly deploy financial assistance to the regions and businesses most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic”. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)