On 9 December, the Commission presented an Action Plan to help the European social economy thrive, tapping into its economic and job-creation potential, as well as its contribution to a fair and inclusive recovery, and the green and digital transitions.
Following the successful start of borrowing to finance the NextGenerationEU recovery in June 2021, and in line with its strategy for open and transparent communication to financial markets, the European Commission announced its issuance plans to cover the funding needs under NextGenerationEU for the first half of 2022.
On 17 December, the Commission disbursed €126 million to Estonia in pre-financing, equivalent to 13% of the country's financial allocation under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).
EU leaders issued a statement concluding the Euro Summit on 16 December. In the statement, leaders acknowledged that the “strong, swift and coordinated economic policy response of the EU and its Member States has been delivering a robust recovery from the COVID-19 crisis.”
“This valuable tool will show exactly how EU countries are advancing with putting their planned investments and reforms into effect for the recovery. The online scoreboard is accessible to everyone, because our aim is for everyone in Europe to benefit from these reforms and investments as we move out of the immediate crisis and into longer-term growth.”
The European Commission has launched the Recovery and Resilience Scoreboard, a public online platform to show progress made in the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) as a whole, and of the individual national recovery and resilience plans. Launched on 15 December, the Scoreboard is first and foremost a tool to transparently display information to EU citizens on the RRF's implementation.
This paper investigates complementarities in terms of capital formation with a view at various tangible and intangible assets across Europe.
On 7 December, the European Commission and Croatia signed a Partnership Agreement for the organisation of information and communication campaigns on the changeover to the euro in Croatia.
New rules have entered into force, which will ensure transparent reporting of reforms and investments for the recovery, as well as social spending under the Recovery and Resilience Facility.
Public support for the euro is strong and stable, according to the European Commission's latest Eurobarometer survey.
The Commission has received France's first payment request under the Recovery and Resilience Facility for a disbursement of €7.4 billion in financial support (net of pre-financing).
The European Commission has disbursed €1.8 billion to Romania in pre-financing, equivalent to 13% of the country's grant allocation under the Recovery and Resilience Facility.
At an ECOFIN meeting on 7 December, Ministers agreed on a proposal for a Council directive value added tax (VAT) rates.
During a Eurogroup meeting on 6 December, euro area finance and economy ministers listened to a presentation by the IMF on the outcome of its Article IV mission to the euro area, a regular exercise in which the IMF reviews economic developments, consults with policymakers and provides targeted policy advice.
“Today's positive preliminary assessment is a recognition of Spain having adopted a very broad range of reforms: measures to enhance education and training for all Spaniards, support the most vulnerable households, boost digital skills and the competitiveness of SMEs, and chart a course for a 100% renewables-based electricity. In these uncertain times, today we send a signal of confidence in the implementation of Spain's ambitious plan to achieve stronger, more inclusive and more sustainable growth.”
On 3 December, the European Commission adopted a positive preliminary assessment of Spain's payment request for €10 billion in grants under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the key instrument at the heart of NextGenerationEU.
On 18 November, the Commission adopted a Communication on a competition policy fit for new challenges, which frames the important role of competition policy for Europe's path towards recovery, the green and digital transitions, and for a resilient Single Market.
On 12 November, the Commission received the first payment request from Spain under the Recovery and Resilience Facility for a disbursement of €10 billion in financial support (net of pre-financing).
The twelfth enhanced surveillance report for Greece issued on 24 November as part of the European Semester Autumn Package, finds that the country has further progressed towards achieving the agreed commitments, despite delays encountered in some areas which are partly linked to the challenging circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the catastrophic wildfires in August 2021.
As part of the European Semester, on 24 November, the Commission issued opinions on the Draft Budgetary Plans (DBPs) of euro area Member States.
