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In an extraordinary plenary session on Thursday 26 March, MEPs will vote on a European Commission proposal to allow member states to request financial assistance from the EU Solidarity Fund in their fight against Covid-19. The proposal is part of a set of EU measures to mobilise all existing budget resources to help EU countries tackle the pandemic.

The Commission proposes to broaden the Solidarity Fund’s scope to add major public health crises to the natural emergencies initially covered.

The hardest hit member states should get access to financial support of up to €800 million in 2020. Support would be decided on a case-by-case basis.

EU solidarity

Created as a reaction to the severe floods in Central Europe in 2002, the EU Solidarity Fund’s main objective is to provide financial assistance to EU member states dealing with natural disasters. Under the current rules, the fund can only support the recovery from disasters such as floods, forest fires, earthquakes, storms and droughts. Public health emergencies such as Covid-19 do not fall within its remit.

Under the new rules, public emergency and recovery operations, such as restoring the working order of infrastructures, cleaning up of areas and providing temporary accommodation for people, remain eligible for financing. The rules would be extended to cover assistance to the population in case of health crises and to cover measures to contain infectious diseases.

A number of EU countries have introduced containment measures – such as travel restrictions, quarantine zones and lock-downs – to deal with the corona pandemic. These measures are having a major impact on the transport sector, so be sure you know your passenger rights.

On 18 March, the European Commission presented detailed guidelines to guarantee that EU passenger rights are applied in a coherent way and passengers are protected across all EU countries.

What if my flight is cancelled?

Airlines cancelling flights have the obligation – in all cases – to offer passengers the following options:

1. Refund
2. Re-routing at the earliest convenience
3. Re-routing at a later date, chosen by the passenger

If you choose re-routing at the earliest convenience, take into account there may be considerable delays given the limited number of flights that currently operate due to national measures to contain the virus.

Do I have the right to a hotel and meals in case of cancellation?

Air carriers have the obligation – without exception – to provide free meals, refreshments and hotel accommodation for passengers whose flight is cancelled and have chosen re-routing at the earliest convenience.

Am I entitled to compensation?

Air passengers have the right to compensation if their flight is cancelled less than two weeks before the departure date, unless there are “extraordinary circumstances”. This exception may apply in the case of the corona outbreak, where the measures taken by public authorities prevent the normal activity of airlines.

What if I want to cancel my trip?

If you cancel your trip on your own initiative, the refund depends on the type of ticket you purchased, as specified in the terms and conditions. Consult the carrier for more details.

The European Union is the only place in the world where everyone travelling by plane, rail, ship and bus is protected by a full set of passenger rights.

Find out what the European Parliament is doing to protect passenger rights across the EU.

Avoiding empty flights

Airport rules oblige airlines to operate most of their take-off and landing slots, if they do not want to risk losing them.

On Thursday 26 March, Parliament will debate and vote on a Commission proposal to temporarily suspend EU rules concerning airport slots, in order to stop so-called ghost flights.

Today the President of the Community Plant Variety Office (CPVO) has taken a “Decision concerning the extension of time limits” that fall in the period 17 March – 3 May included, until 4 May 2020 for parties to proceedings before the Office and the Board of Appeal. The extension applies to all deadlines except for the submission of material for technical examinations and the payment of examination fees.

“The CPVO recognises that the COVID-19 crisis has direct implications for parties to proceedings who need to make the necessary practical arrangements and adapt their working methods in line with measures adopted by health authorities across the European Union” said Martin Ekvad, President of the CPVO.

“There is an impact on various sectors such as IT communications, postal and bank services and transport and delivery services in the EU. The CPVO and the network of Examination Offices are also adapting to the new extraordinary circumstances. It is therefore considered appropriate to extend time limits in proceedings before the CPVO and the Board of Appeal”, he added.

The extensions do not apply to the submission of material for technical examinations and the payment of examination fees because there are different deadlines for submitting material depending on the species in question. Certain technical examinations may start as scheduled, as applicants may be in the position to submit the material in question in time. In these cases, it would not be appropriate to postpone the tests. In other cases, a postponement would be necessary. For this reason, it is not appropriate to take a general decision on the postponement of the submission of plant material.

The CPVO will use its discretionary power to allow for postponements where that is needed taking into account the ongoing crisis. The deadline to pay for a technical examination is linked to the date to submit material. For this reason, it is not considered necessary to include an extension to pay the fee for the technical examination in the above mentioned decision.

An Explanatory note detailing the practical aspects of today’s Decision is also available. The Office will use the time until 4 May 2020 to assess the evolution of the crises and make all appropriate consultations.

​An exchange platform will help sharing needs and solutions, will enhance mutual support and act as a feedback mechanism to enable a reality check of the EU measures from the local and regional angle. The CoR will provide local communities with regular and practical information about EU actions.

The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) has defined an Action plan to support and assist local and regional authorities on the forefront of the fight against the Coronavirus pandemic. The five-points Plan includes the launch of an exchange platform to help local and regional leaders sharing their needs and solutions and to enhance mutual support between local communities across Europe. It will also enable CoR Members to give their feedback on the EU actions already put in place, allowing a policy reality check from the ground. The CoR will provide regular and practical information about EU measures, with particular focus on the financing opportunities.

The Action Plan – endorsed today via video conference by the CoR Conference of Presidents* – calls EU institutions to foster EU support to local leaders via an EU Health Emergency Mechanism aiming, between others, at coordinating the distribution of essential medical equipment throughout the EU. To address the health, social and economic needs of the people, local and regional leaders need to protect their economies. The Action Plan asks for financial support for local businesses and people faced with unemployment and for EU support for tailor-made regional recovery strategies, currently drawn up by many EU regions to stabilise the economy.

Commenting the endorsement of the Action Plan, the President of the European Committee of the Regions, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, said: “Our CoR members and all EU’s regional and local leaders are making extraordinary efforts in the fight against the pandemic. In these difficult times we must be united and act responsibly. Many Presidents of Regions and Mayors have asked me to establish an exchange platform that will allow CoR members and EU local and regional leaders to share their needs, feedback and ideas and to elaborate common solutions. The Action Plan will also allow to better target local communities’ healthcare needs and to address the social and economic aspects of the pandemic and their impact on local and regional authorities”.

Within its institutional role, the CoR is the interface and reference point between the European Union and its local and regional governments. In the framework of the current crisis, it is ready to assist, inform, engage and represent regions and cities across Europe. In operational and concrete terms, the CoR Action Plan will:

1) foster EU support to local and regional authorities in the health sector, via the call for an EU Health Emergency Mechanism;

2) create a platform to exchange, cooperate and facilitate mutual support between cities and regions across EU;

3) provide, through CoR mechanisms, concrete feedback from the local and regional angle on how to address the health, social and economic aspects of the pandemic and their impact on the people and their local communities;

4) provide regular, practical information to local and regional authorities on EU measures to address the crisis;

5) facilitate a reality check on the ground of the EU’s measures to fight the pandemic; gather evidence from Members to improve EU policies based on the experiences of the local and regional level (policy health check).

These actions and measures will be accompanied by communication targeted actions to explain what the EU is doing to assist and support local communities in their fight against the Coronavirus pandemic.

* The Conference of Presidents of the European Committee of the Regions:

Apostolos Tzitzikostas, President of the European Committee of the Regions and Governor of the Region of Central Macedonia, Greece

Vasco Ilídio Alves Cordeiro, First Vice-President of the European Committee of the Regions and President of the Regional Government of the Azores, Portugal

Olgierd Geblewicz, President of the EPP Group in the European Committee of the Regions and President of the Westpomeranian Region, Poland

Christophe Rouillon, President of the PES Group in the European Committee of the Regions and Mayor of Coulaines, France

François Decoster, President of the Renew Europe Group in the European Committee of the Regions and Mayor of St Omer, France

Władysław Ortyl, President of the ECR Group in the European Committee of the Regions and President of the Podkarpackie Region, Poland

Kieran McCarthy, President of the EA Group in the European Committee of the Regions and Member of the Cork City Council, Ireland

Satu Haapanen, co-President of the Greens Group in the European Committee of the Regions and City Councillor of Oulu, Finland

President’s Spokesperson:

Michele CerconeTel.
+32 (0)498 98 23 49
Michele.Cercone@cor.europa.eu