On 10 May, the Council adopted new rules to strengthen the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, following the Parliament’s endorsement on 27 April.
In light of the impact caused by COVID-19, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism will benefit from an enhanced European response underpinned by the rescEU and faster coordination of disaster response.
The EU will strengthen the EU’s Emergency Response Coordination Centre — the EU's hub for crisis management — with enhanced operational, analytical, monitoring, information management and communication capabilities. As for prevention and preparedness, the EU is set to define Union-wide resilience goals and scenario plans together with Member States as well as improving disaster loss data collection to support evidence-based scenario building.
The EU’s Civil Protection improvements will enjoy an additional financial support of €1,26 billion from the Multiannual Financial Framework and another €2,05 billion via the NextGenerationEU.
A survey conducted by the EU revealed that 84% of Europeans agree that coordinated EU action should be increased to respond more effectively to future disasters and crises.