10/02/2021 (Agence Europe) – On Wednesday 10 February, the European Parliament approved the Interinstitutional Agreement on the Regulation establishing the Recovery and Resilience Facility by a substantial majority (582 votes in favour, 40 against and 69 abstentions). This €672.5 billion budgetary instrument (€312.5 billion in grants and €360 billion in loans) is at the heart of the Next Generation EU Recovery Plan (see EUROPE 12626/1 and 12654/1). The 28 Italian Lega MEPs from within the Identity and Democracy Group voted in favour. In contrast, the far-right Italian party could support the formation of a technical government led by Mario Draghi, the former president of the ECB. Read the legislative text on the Facility: http://bit.ly/2YUd12S (MB)