(01 April 2020) – The European Commission President will put forward a new instrument for temporary Support to mitigate Unemployment Risks in an Emergency (SURE).
“This is European solidarity in action,” von der Leyen said in a video message posted on Twitter, adding that the new instrument would “save millions of jobs during the crisis and allow us to quickly restart Europe’s economic engine afterwards.”
“The SURE instrument will act as a second line of defence, supporting short-time work schemes and similar measures, to help member states protect jobs and thus employees and self-employed against the risk of unemployment and loss of income,” according to a document seen by EurActiv.com.
SURE will be a lending scheme with the firepower of up to €100 billion backed by a system of guarantees from member states. The new fund will be available once member states offer guarantees totalling at least €25 billion. (EurActiv)