20/01/2021 (Agence Europe) – On Tuesday 19 January, the European Parliament endorsed by a large majority (540 votes in favour, 75 against and 77 abstentions) the proposal for a regulation establishing a European Technical Support Instrument for structural reforms in Member States (see EUROPE 12624/4). With a budget of €864 million for the 2021–2027 period, this instrument, which EU countries will use on a voluntary basis, will specifically help them to prepare and amend a national recovery plan that they must send to the European Commission by the end of April under the framework of the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the instrument that is at the heart of the Next Generation EU recovery plan. See the wording of the regulation: https://bit.ly/3bUkcjl (MB)