Interference by the Commission in defining the content of the national recovery and resilience plans

Subject: Interference by the Commission in defining the content of the national recovery and resilience plans

Recent news reports indicate that the Commission has put pressure on Member States to include a number of ‘reforms’ in their national recovery and resilience plans and has raised several objections to the first versions of the plans submitted.

Also according to the news reports, the Commission and the Portuguese Government have agreed on a number of ‘reforms’ to the national recovery and resilience plan.

Can the Commission provide detailed and up-to-date information on what ‘reforms’ have been agreed with the Portuguese Government as part of its national recovery and resilience plan?

How does it justify the pressure it has put on Portugal to amend the first version of its plan, whether with regard to the abandonment of planned investments or the inclusion of some of the so-called ‘reforms’?

Answer given by Executive Vice-President Dombrovskis on behalf of the European Commission (17 August 2021)

On 15 October 2020, the Portuguese authorities published a first draft of the Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Plan.

On 15 February 2021, the Portuguese authorities published a second draft of the Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Plan, which was put to public consultation until the end of February 2021.

On 22 April 2021, the Portuguese authorities submitted the official Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Plan. All documents involved were made public by the Portuguese authorities in the Portuguese Transparency Portal (1).

During the assessment period, there was an intensive and constructive dialogue between the Commission and the Portuguese authorities. The Commission hopes to continue this good cooperation also during the implementation phase.

On 16 June 2021, the Commission endorsed the Plan (2), which was adopted by the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (3) on 13 July 2021.

The Commission’s assessment of the Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Plan, which was done in accordance with the legal requirements of the regulation establishing the Recovery and Resilience Facility (4), is also available, notably together with the Commission’s Staff Working Document detailing the assessment (5).

⋅1∙ https://dados.gov.pt/pt/datasets/documentacao-do-prr/

⋅2∙ https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_21_2985

⋅3∙ https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2021/07/13/council-gives-green-light-to-first-recovery-disbursements/

⋅4∙ https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32021R0241

⋅5∙ https://ec.europa.eu/info/system/files/com_321_7_swd_en.pdf