Commission proposes to provide €5.9 billion in financial support for Portugal under SURE

The European Commission has presented a proposal to the Council for a decision to grant €5.9 billion in financial support to Portugal under the SURE instrument. This follows yesterday’s proposals to the Council for decisions to grant financial support of €81.4 billion to 15 Member States under the SURE instrument. Including Portugal, the Commission is now proposing to provide a total of €87.3 billion in financial support under SURE to 16 Member States. Once the Council approves this proposal, the financial support will be provided in the form of loans granted on favourable terms from the EU to Portugal. These loans will assist Portugal in addressing sudden increases in public expenditure to preserve employment. Specifically, they will help Portugal to cover the costs related to its short-time work scheme. SURE is a crucial element of the EU’s comprehensive strategy to protect citizens and mitigate the severely negative socio-economic consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. The Commission continues to assess a formal request for support from Hungary and expects to put forward a proposal shortly.