On April 27, the European Parliament adopted a strengthened EU legal framework for civil protection, in response to the unprecedented experience of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The mechanism aims to ensure the EU and its member states will be better prepared to respond to large-scale disasters, especially when these affect several countries simultaneously.
In order to deploy crisis relief more swiftly, the Commission will be able to acquire directly, under specific conditions, the necessary resources via the rescEU reserve.
1.263 billion EUR will be allocated to the Mechanism for 2021-2027, supplemented by 2.056 billion EUR from the EU Recovery Instrument (approximately five times more than the previous seven-year budget).
During the plenary debate on Monday, April 27, MEPs acknowledged the key role the civil protection mechanism played during the COVID-19 pandemic, and its position as a symbol of EU solidarity. They underlined that the adjustments approved in Plenary will bring more flexibility, better coordination and more resources channelled towards tackling future large-scale emergencies.