European Parliament resolution of 14 December 2022 on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Luxembourg, Spain and Greece further to natural disasters that took place in these countries in the course of 2021 (COM(2022)0665 — C9-0350/2022 — 2022/0337(BUD))
Date: 2022-12-14
Institutions: Committee on Budgets, Committee on Regional Development, European Parliament
Subjects: EU Member State, European Union Solidarity Fund, aid to disaster victims, commitment of expenditure, earthquake, emergency aid, flood, general budget (EU), payment appropriation, volcanic eruption








C_2023177EN.01014501.xml










17.5.2023   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 177/145






P9_TA(2022)0440
Mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund: assistance to Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Luxembourg, Spain and Greece
European Parliament resolution of 14 December 2022 on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Luxembourg, Spain and Greece further to natural disasters that took place in these countries in the course of 2021 (COM(2022)0665 — C9-0350/2022 — 2022/0337(BUD))
(2023/C 177/23)

The European Parliament,






—


having regard to the Commission proposal to the European Parliament and the Council COM(2022)0665 — C9-0350/2022,










—


having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2012/2002 of 11 November 2002 establishing the European Union Solidarity Fund (1) (the ‘EUSF Regulation’),










—


having regard to Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 of 17 December 2020 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027 (2), and in particular Article 9 thereof (the ‘MFF Regulation’),










—


having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 December 2020 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management, as well as on new own resources, including a roadmap towards the introduction of new own resources (3), and in particular point 10 thereof,










—


having regard to special report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on global warming of 1,5 oC, its special report on climate change and land, and its special report on the ocean and cryosphere in a changing climate,










—


having regard to the Agreement adopted at the 21st Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP21) in Paris on 12 December 2015 (the ‘Paris Agreement’),










—


having regard to its resolution of 18 May 2021 on the review of the European Union Solidarity Fund (4),










—


having regard to the letter from the Committee on Regional Development,










—


having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A9-0282/2022),












1.


Expresses its deepest solidarity with all the victims, their families and all the individuals affected by the destructive floods in Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Austria and Luxembourg, by the volcanic eruption on the island of La Palma in Spain and by the earthquake in Crete in Greece, as well as with the national, regional and local authorities and non-governmental organisations involved in the relief efforts;












2.


Notes the decision and considers the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) as a tangible and visible form of the Union’s solidarity with its citizens and the regions in the affected areas in Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Austria, Luxembourg, Spain and Greece;












3.


Underlines that the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine has created immense needs in emergency assistance both within the Union and in neighbouring countries; underlines that the effects of the war, coupled with the consequences of severe natural disasters in 2022, has placed the Solidarity and Emergency Aid Reserve (SEAR) under extreme pressure;












4.


Stresses that the number and severity of emergencies is unpredictable; reiterates its position that the SEAR’s annual ceiling for the period 2021-2027 is not adequate to respond to emergencies; regrets that, due to budgetary constraints, the citizens and regions of the Member States concerned by the Commission’s proposal will receive limited assistance that is far from sufficient to cover the needs;












5.


Stresses the urgent need to release financial assistance through the EUSF to ensure that support can reach the affected regions in a timely manner; regrets at the same time that the maximum amount available for this EUSF mobilisation is much lower than the potential aid amount that could be needed and comes more than a year after the events took place due to the inflexible mobilisation rules of the EUSF; calls therefore on the Commission to explore further possibilities for additional funding;












6.


Reiterates its concern about the decision to merge the Emergency Aid Reserve (EAR) and the EUSF in the current multiannual financial framework, which has led to serious shortcomings, and significantly reduced the overall funding available; regrets the fact that due to the rules for mobilisation of the SEAR and the limitations on frontloading EUSF funds on the basis of Article 9(5) of the MFF Regulation, additional funding is not possible; urges the Commission to come forward with a model for a faster and more timely mobilisation of the EUSF; believes that the available resources for EUSF should be substantially increased and made available in a more timely manner as part of the ambitious multiannual financial framework revision;












7.


Stresses that the awarding, management and implementation of EUSF grants should be used in line with the principles of transparency and sound financial management including thorough monitoring; calls on the Commission and the Member States to step up communication efforts to improve the public awareness of the interventions done with financing under the EUSF;












8.


Underlines that an ambitious multiannual financial framework revision should include splitting the SEAR into two strands — the EAR and the EUSF — and for annual appropriations to be increased from EUR 1,2 billion for the SEAR overall to EUR 1 billion for each strand in 2018 prices; considers that this would provide vital additional resources to respond to current and emerging needs, in particular in light of the intensification and multiplication of extreme weather events and in view of the global humanitarian situation;












9.


Highlights the need to reconsider the architecture of the EUSF mechanism to render it speedier, more flexible and more agile, in order to allow it to fulfil its potential as an effective emergency instrument; calls, therefore, for a revision of the EUSF Regulation;












10.


Approves the decision annexed to this resolution;












11.


Instructs its President to sign the decision with the President of the Council and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;












12.


Instructs its President to forward this resolution, including its annex, to the Council and the Commission.






(1)  OJ L 311, 14.11.2002, p. 3.

(2)  OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 11.

(3)  OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 28.

(4)  OJ C 15, 12.1.2022, p. 2.





ANNEX


DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL


on the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Luxembourg, Spain and Greece further to natural disasters that took place in those countries in the course of 2021


(The text of this annex is not reproduced here since it corresponds to the final act, Decision (EU) 2023/68.)