Sven Giegold

EU Summit/Financial Solidarity: EU Commission proposal points in the right direction

Before the EU summit on Thursday the EU Commission is working on a proposal for a corona recovery fund to deal with the corona crisis using the EU budget. According to the proposal, common bonds are to be issued, backed by guarantees in the multiannual financial framework resulting from the difference between payment commitments in the budget by the member states and actual expenditure by the EU. Such a solution in the EU budget has been tried and tested because it has already been used on a smaller scale in the past. This also protects against constitutional and European law concerns. Sven Giegold, spokesman of Bündnis 90/Die Grünen in the European Parliament, explains:

 

“The EU Commission’s proposal shows an interesting way out of the blockades. At the EU summit, the German government should support real solidarity on the basis of the Commission proposal. It is right to use the scope of the EU budget for joint bonds. It is crucial that the money is not disbursed in the form of loans and that it amounts to at least 1,000 billion euros. Loans would drive up the debt levels of individual countries. A significantly higher debt level would make economic recovery impossible for countries like Italy. The first to benefit from the financial aid must be the countries hardest hit by the corona crisis. Repayment of the joint bonds should be made according to member states’ economic strength. It is important that the EU Parliament, together with the national parliaments, have democratic control rights. The EU Commission’s proposal will increase European solidarity in this crisis. The interest in reaching a rapid conclusion on the EU’s medium-term financial framework could increase significantly thanks to the proposal. A quick agreement on the EU budget for the next seven years would be a gain for Europe as a whole.”

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