The European Commission has proposed increasing the budget for the EU Civil Protection Mechanism to €10.675 billion in the 2028-2034 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), up from €3.319 billion (including €2.056 billion from the EU Recovery Instrument) in the 2021-2027 MFF (see EUROPE 12717/29).
The aim of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism is “to ensure the protection of people, the environment, property and cultural heritage against all types of natural and man-made disasters, including serious cross-border health threats”. This new budget allocation is part of an update to the Regulation on the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (ECPM), proposed by the European Commission on Thursday 17 July.
This increase is in line with the reallocation of part of the funds from the EU4Health programme (health emergency preparedness and response activities) to the Civil Protection Mechanism within the future Multiannual Financial Framework.
Funding for preparedness and response to health emergencies will be integrated into the ECPM “to ensure a comprehensive and integrated EU response to crises”. Particular emphasis will be placed on improving the availability and accessibility of medical countermeasures.
The new ECPM regulation should improve coordination between the various civil protection sectors, including closer cooperation between the civilian and military sectors.
This proposed revision of the regulation includes three main innovations: - setting up a crisis coordination platform based on the Emergency Response Coordination Centre; - strengthening preparedness and response to health emergencies (including cross-border threats), with increased funding for surveillance, medical stocks and procurement; - strengthening national capacities and involving stakeholders (the population, volunteers, the private and military sectors) in civil protection.
“Requests for assistance have increased more than tenfold since the ECPM began in the early 2000s, and requests increased during the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine”, said the European Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib.
See the draft regulation: https://aeur.eu/f/hyt (Original version in French by Florent Servia)