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The Council today adopted conclusions on seizing the opportunities of digitalisation for access to justice.

The further digitalisation of the member states’ judicial systems has enormous potential to continue to facilitate and improve access to justice for citizens throughout the EU. Digital tools can help to better structure proceedings and to automate and accelerate the handling of standardised and uniform tasks, thereby increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of court proceedings. The COVID-19 crisis has confirmed the need to invest and make use of digital tools in judicial proceedings.

In this context, the conclusions encourage member states to make increased use of digital tools throughout judicial proceedings and call on the Commission to develop a comprehensive EU strategy on the digitalisation of justice by the end of 2020. They also stress that using digital technologies should not undermine the fundamental principles of judicial systems, including the independence and impartiality of the courts, the guarantee of effective legal protection and the right to a fair and public hearing.

The conclusions also note the need to promote digital skills in the justice sector, to allow judges, prosecutors, judicial staff and other justice practitioners to use digital tools effectively and with due respect for the rights and freedoms of those seeking justice.

The text notes that the use of artificial intelligence in the justice sector is already being researched and developed and recognises that it has the potential to improve the functioning of justice systems. It underlines that the use of artificial intelligence tools must not interfere with the decision-making power of judges or judicial independence, or infringe the right to a fair trial and effective remedy.

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The European Investment Bank (EIB) is providing €50 million to the Autonomous Community of Navarre to strengthen its capacity to respond to the COVID-19 health crisis. The EU bank financing will enable the Spanish region to adapt its healthcare infrastructure to meet the additional costs generated by the pandemic.

The EIB is granting these funds under a specific programme it approved to support healthcare investments in Spain and Portugal. The aim of this €750 million programme is to help bolster healthcare infrastructure and support health sector research and development (R&D) investment in both countries. This financing is also part of the extraordinary measures the EIB has taken to speed up its processes and make its internal policies more flexible in order to – among other things – deploy its support as quickly as possible and finance expenses that it would not normally cover, such as the operating costs of businesses and the extraordinary expenditure of public authorities.

Under this agreement, the Autonomous Community of Navarre will have access to the medium and long-term resources it needs to deal with the pandemic. The EIB funds (provided on favourable terms) will enable it to finance the extraordinary operating expenses caused by the crisis. This covers the purchase of medical supplies, including health equipment and mobile units; the use of hospital and hotel facilities; and additional healthcare personnel costs.

The EIB financing will also help create jobs at a time of crisis, with the Autonomous Community of Navarre estimating that it will need employ at least 375 additional people (both medical and administrative staff) during the implementation phase.

EIB Vice-President Emma Navarro, who is responsible for the EU bank’s operations in Spain, made the following comment on this agreement: “The COVID-19 crisis has placed a great deal of strain on healthcare facilities in Spain. At the EIB, we are taking specific measures to alleviate this pressure by providing funds to adapt healthcare infrastructure and finance extraordinary costs caused by the pandemic. We are pleased to be taking a further step in this direction by supporting the Autonomous Community of Navarre’s health efforts in this crisis. As the EU bank, we will do everything in our power to help Europe to handle the pandemic and to drive the economic recovery.”

Speaking on behalf of the government of Navarre, Minister of the Economy and Finance Elma Saiz highlighted: “The importance of being able to conclude an agreement like this one for a more secure response to some of the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. An agreement that also features a favourable interest rate.”

EIB response to COVID-19

The EIB Group is playing a key role in directly combating COVID-19 by supporting EU efforts to halt the spread of the pandemic, find a cure for the illness and develop a vaccine. To this end, the EU bank is prioritising all investments related to the health sector and research and development programmes focusing on this goal. The agreement signed today with the Autonomous Community of Navarre is an example of this support. The operation was approved using an accelerated procedure put in place by the EIB for this emergency situation, which will ensure that the funds can reach Navarre as soon as possible.

The EIB’s current project portfolio for supporting both critical healthcare infrastructure and research and development investments in the EU health sector stands at around €6 billion. The EIB and the World Health Organization also recently signed an agreement to drive cooperation between the two institutions and work together to strengthen healthcare systems in the countries most vulnerable to the pandemic.

To combat the economic impact of this crisis in Europe, and in line with the Eurogroup’s 9 April recommendation, the EIB Board of Directors signalled its support for the creation of a €25 billion European guarantee fund for COVID-19 on 16 April. The fund will make it possible to mobilise up to an estimated €200 billion of additional financing, with a focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

At the same time, the EIB Group is reorienting its operations to meet the financing needs created by COVID-19 and offer immediate assistance to European businesses. In March, the EIB Group announced a package of measures with this objective in mind. As part of this initial response package, the European Investment Fund (EIF – the EIB Group subsidiary specialising in support for SMEs) is offering specific EU-backed guarantees to financial intermediaries that will help to mobilise up to €8 billion in financing. For its part, the EIB is also adapting its existing financing instruments shared with the European Commission to mobilise up to €20 billion in additional financing for European SMEs and mid-caps.

More detailed information on the support offered by the EIB and EIF

• More than half of the loan will back healthcare infrastructure
• Financing will also cover transport, social care, education and energy efficiency of public buildings
• New partnership will support regional cohesion

The European Investment Bank (EIB) signed a CZK 1.3 billion loan (equivalent to €48 million) with Středočeský kraj, the Region of Central Bohemia in Czech Republic, to improve healthcare, transport, social care and education infrastructures, as well as to increase energy efficiency of public buildings.

EIB loan will cover the construction, modernisation and optimisation of the medical facilities of the region. It will enable the medical infrastructures to achieve higher efficiency, increased service quality, energy savings, as well as improved emergency preparedness, notably to cope with pandemics such as the COVID-19.

Investment in the transport sector will include improvements of the intra-regional connectivity, which will result in safer roads and reduced traffic congestion. The project will also contribute to improve the quality of public services in the sectors of education and culture, thanks to the construction and rehabilitation of dedicated buildings.

EIB Vice-President Lilyana Pavlova said: Supporting cohesion so that each European region can achieve its full potential is one of the original raisons d’être of the EIB and is now more than ever one of our priorities. I am very pleased to announce this partnership with the Central Bohemia Region of the Czech Republic during the European Week of Regions and Cities. I am convinced that our joint projects will contribute to build sustainable and resilient infrastructure that will enable the region to cope with current and future health, economic and climate challenges. Together we will enhance the attractiveness of the region and increase economic opportunities and the quality of life of all citizens.”

„In the next four years, the loan will be drawn in the Central Bohemia Region on the basis of individual applications and contracts. The first drawdown should be this year for a total of 52 projects, of which 17 are projects in the field of healthcare (CZK 2 billion), 15 projects in the field of road transport (CZK 449 million), 2 projects in the field of education (CZK 176 million), 4 projects in the field of social affairs (CZK 255 million) and 14 projects in the field of energy savings (CZK 152 million),” specified Gabriel Kovács, Deputy Governor for Finance (ANO 2011).

This new EIB financing contributes to the Central Bohemia regional plans for development and land-use, which seek to improve the backbone infrastructure of the region and thus boost the economy and improve the quality of public services in the region. The energy efficiency measures included in the project for the rehabilitation and construction of new public buildings are in line with the Central Bohemia Energy Policy. The EIB is also providing technical assistance through its European Local ENergy Assistance (ELENA) for deep energy efficiency renovation projects in buildings of organisations administrated by the Central Bohemia Region. As Cohesion Priority Region, Central Bohemia is also receiving EU support to implement its development plans.

The Central Bohemia Region Development Programme 2014-2020 comprises five development priorities for the Region: entrepreneurship and employment, infrastructure and territorial development, human resources and education, countryside and agriculture and environment. 

About the Central Bohemia Region

The Central Bohemia Region is located in the centre of Bohemia. It is the largest region of the Czech Republic in terms of size, number of municipalities and population. Its area is 10,929 km2 and the region represents almost 14% of the territory of the Czech Republic. The region features a high proportion of municipalities with a population of up to two thousand (1,031 municipalities), in which 40.9% of the population lives. As of 30 September 2017, the Central Bohemia Region had a population of 1,348,840 and was the most populous region in the Czech Republic. The population density was 123 people per square kilometer. Economic activity and employment of the population, their average wages and household income have been increasing in the Central Bohemia Region for a long time and the numbers are the second highest in the Czech Republic, with Prague being the first.