Filenews 26 September 2020
The Council of Member States today approved financial support of EUR 87.4 billion for 16 Member States in the form of EU loans under the SURE programme to support employment.
According to the Decision, the funding will help K-M to finance the serious increase in public expenditure incurred since 1 February 2020 as a result of the use of national short-term work systems and similar measures, including the self-employed, and certain health-related measures in response to the pandemic. SURE is one of three security nets, worth EUR 540 billion, agreed by the Eurogroup on 9 April 2020 and subsequently approved by EU leaders to protect workers, businesses and public finances.
The distribution of the above amount is as follows:
Belgium - EUR 7.8 billion
Bulgaria - 511 million euros
Croatia - EUR 1 billion
Cyprus - 479 million euros
Czech Republic - EUR 2 billion
Greece - 2.7 billion euros
Italy - EUR 27.4 billion
Latvia - EUR 193 million
Lithuania - EUR 602 million
Malta - EUR 244 million
Poland - EUR 11.2 billion
Portugal - EUR 5.9 billion
Romania - EUR 4.1 billion
Slovakia - EUR 631 million
Slovenia - EUR 1.1 billion
Spain - EUR 21.3 billion
"SURE is an important part of our response to the unprecedented challenges created by the COVID-19 crisis. The considerable interest of the Member States in this instrument confirms its importance and the real added value for workers and companies. Millions of workers across the EU will benefit from this instrument. This is a clear signal that in Europe we are stronger together," said Olaf Scholz, German Federal Minister of Finance.
Source: Eyenews / CYPE
