European Parliament President David Sassoli on Friday said that any delay in the COVID-19 recovery package would undermine public finances
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th July, 2020) European Parliament President David Sassoli on Friday said that any delay in the COVID-19 recovery package would undermine public finances.
Earlier in the day, a two-day EU summit on post-pandemic recovery began in Brussels, with the countries' leaders aiming to reach a compromise on the much-debated issue of COVID-19 recovery funding.
"Any postponement could trigger new storms and imperil the European scene ... if Europe does not decide, maybe a financial storm front could hit public finances," Sassoli said while expressing confidence that there is an opportunity to have a proposal that could launch subsequent negotiations with parliament.
He has also outlined parliament's stance on national recovery plans, saying they ought to be aligned with common European challenges, and other related issues.
"As you know, parliament wishes to discuss, to begin a negotiation. We have our priorities on the recovery and on the MFF [multiannual financial framework]. For us, that's a single package," he added.
As the COVID-19 epidemic has unfolded, many countries have adopted severe restrictions to stop the virus from spreading, undermining their economies in the process. To counter the deleterious economic ramifications of the disease, the European Union plans to set up a recovery fund of about $825 billion, with countries like Spain, Italy and Poland said to be the main beneficiaries. However, the so-called Frugal Four group of European countries Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden are not partial to the initiative, with domestic oppositions holding them back.
