Spain is set to receive a total of 77 billion in grants and 63 billion euros in credit as part of a 750 billion program approved by the European Commission (EC) to help European Union (EU) member states recover from the coronavirus crisis.
Presented in the European Parliament Wednesday by EC President Ursula von der Leyen, the plan is a compromise between proposals coming from southern European nations calling for a no-strings attached recovery grants for struggling countries underwritten by joint-borrowing by all EU member states, versus calls for monies to be made available through loans with contingencies that would require countries drawing down on the credit to follow through on structural economic reforms.
► News Sources: Economía Digital, La Vanguardia and EuroNews …
Under the plan approved by the EC, 500 billion would be made available in unconditional grants to countries whose economies have been hit hard by the coronavirus crisis, with access also being provided to 250 billion in additional loans that would have conditions attached to them. The money is to be raised by joint borrowing by all EU countries within the framework of the EC general budget through 2027.
If the plan is ratified by the EU Parliament and the heads of state of all 27 EU countries, the program will see distribution to EU member states between 2021 and 2024. Those countries which have suffered the most economically as a result of the coronavirus crisis would receive larger shares of the recovery funding.
Spain is set to receive the second-highest amount of assistance, getting a total of 140 billion euros, 77 billion of which will be in the form of direct grants. That amount lags only Italy, which has been hardest hit by the crisis and will receive a total of 172 billion euros in assistance, 81 billion of which will be available in the form of direct grant transfers.
► News Sources: EurActiv, The New York Times and Bloomberg …
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