Mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund: assistance to Austria, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Moldova relating to floods occurred in September 2024 and Bosnia and Herzegovina relating to floods occurred in October 2024
The European Parliament adopted by 643 votes to 13, with 35 abstentions, a resolution 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 Austria, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Moldova relating to floods occurred in September 2024 and Bosnia and Herzegovina relating to floods occurred in October 2024.
Parliament adopted the decision to mobilise, within the Union's general budget for 2025, the following amounts in commitment and payment appropriations from the European Union Solidarity Fund, in relation to the floods that occurred in September and October 2024:
(a) EUR 42 789 075 to Austria;
(b) EUR 75 998 939 to Poland;
(c) EUR 113 979 781 to Czechia;
(d) EUR 2 108 187 to Slovakia;
(e) EUR 195 196 to Moldova;
(f) EUR 45 669 725 to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In its resolution, Parliament highlighted the increasing number of severe, destructive and deadly natural disasters in Europe and called on Member States and the Commission to invest in climate change mitigation and adaptation measures. It suggested substantially increasing the budget of the EUSF or its equivalent, in the context of the Commission's upcoming proposal on the new Multiannual Financial Framework, so that the EUSF can provide citizens with assistance commensurate with the scale of these disasters. The Commission is invited to explore all possible avenues to accelerate the mobilisation of the EUSF.
Parliament called on the Commission to develop dedicated crisis response instruments for post-2027, emphasising the need to:
- enhance coordination with national civil protection systems and early warning mechanisms to ensure a more integrated and data-driven Union-wide response disaster response;
- provide specific support in the area of cross-border and regional cooperation for preparedness, mitigation and recovery efforts, particularly in vulnerable or high-risk areas.
Given that the EUSF is only a curative instrument, the Union should also continue to address climate change adaptation and mitigation by supporting European and national disaster prevention policies. The European Environment Agency's Report No 1/2024, "European Climate Risk Assessment," warned that the Union is unprepared for the impacts of climate change, even if the world manages to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5°C. Therefore, action is needed to prevent the identified climate risks from reaching critical levels.
Members believe that any reconstruction funded by the EUSF should be climate-resilient. They stressed the importance of ensuring adequate flexibility between different programmes and reaffirmed that EUSF support should not be to the detriment of Union funding received by Member States under other Union policies or programmes.
Recalling the importance of a rapid and solid damage assessment, Parliament called for increased operational efforts to reduce the average time for the release of advanced payments. It also stressed the importance of informing the public about the concrete positive impact of the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF).