European Parliament approves €672.5 billion Recovery and Resiliency Facility
The European Parliament has given the go-ahead to the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility, the biggest building block of the €750 billion Next Generation EU recovery package
10 February 2021, 10:59am
Paul Cocks
Paul Cocks
2 min read
The European Parliament has approved the Recovery and Resilience Facility, designed to help EU countries tackle the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The regulation on the objectives, financing and rules for accessing the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) was adopted with 582 votes in favour, 40 against and 69 abstentions.
The RRF is the biggest building block of the €750 billion Next Generation EU recovery package.
€672.5 billion in grants and loans will be available to finance national measures designed to alleviate the economic and social consequences of the pandemic. Related projects that began on or after 1 February 2020 can be financed by the RRF, too.
The funding will be available for three years and EU governments can request up to 13% pre-financing for their recovery and resilience plans.
To be eligible for financing, national recovery and resilience plans must focus on key EU policy areas – the green transition including biodiversity, digital transformation, economic cohesion and competitiveness, and social and territorial cohesion.
Those that focus on how institutions react to crisis and supporting them to prepare for it, as well as policies for children and youth, including education and skills, are also eligible for financing.
Each plan has to dedicate at least 37% of its budget to climate and at least 20% to digital actions. They should have a lasting impact in both social and economic terms, include comprehensive reforms and a robust investment package, and must not significantly harm environmental objectives.
The regulation also stipulates that only member states committed to respecting the rule of law and the European Union’s fundamental values can receive money from the RRF.
The European Commission, which is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the RRF, may be asked to appear before Parliament’s relevant committees every two months to discuss the state of the EU recovery and how the targets and milestones have been implemented by member states.
The Commission will also make an integrated information and monitoring system available to the member states to provide comparable information on how funds are being used.
This article is part of a content series called Ewropej. This is a multi-newsroom initiative part-funded by the European Parliament to bring the work of the EP closer to the citizens of Malta and keep them informed about matters that affect their daily lives. This article reflects only the author’s view. The action was co-financed by the European Union in the frame of the European Parliament's grant programme in the field of communication. The European Parliament was not involved in its preparation and is, in no case, responsible for or bound by the information or opinions expressed in the context of this action. In accordance with applicable law, the authors, interviewed people, publishers or programme broadcasters are solely responsible. The European Parliament can also not be held liable for direct or indirect damage that may result from the implementation of the action.
Paul Cocks joined MaltaToday after having spent years working in newspapers with The Times...
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