On 24 September, EENA responded to the European Commission’s ongoing consultation on its next long-term budget for Civil Protection, Preparedness and Response. This budget, which will apply from 2018-2034, aims to increase the size of the current Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) by five times to EUR 10.7 billion.
In its response, EENA welcomed the significant increase in the proposed budget. It noted that while EUR 10.7 billion may still fall short of addressing the growing severity of crises, the flexibility built into the new EU budget – together with the proposal to complement the UCPM through national and regional partnership plans on crisis prevention, climate resilience and preparedness – would give the EU the means to increase funding further if required. However, EENA cautioned that EU funding needed to be seen as a complement to national funding for civil protection, preparedness and response, and not as a substitute for Member State action.
Finally, EENA called for the next EU long-term budget to use its planned European Competitiveness fund to finance investments in emergency communications, in addition to its planned investments in security, defence and space. While these three sectors were prioritised for their importance in strengthening EU resilience and security, emergency communications, like public warning, also play a vital role in preparing populations before a crisis and guiding them during it. At the same time, initiatives to improve the accessibility, coverage and resilience of 112 ensure that people in crisis can reach the emergency services they need.
If you are interested in submitting your own response to the EU’s ongoing consultation on its next long term budget, you can submit it here until 7 November 2025.