The EU's €672.5 billion ($815.1bn) Covid recovery package is "more than enough" and must not be repeated, to ensure the bloc is not overburdened with debt, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said.
Mr Kurz said the supposedly more "frugal" EU member states, including Austria, appreciated the need for the Recovery and Resilience Facility, with the Austrian leader saying he believed it would be enough to kick-start the bloc's economies.
Under the facility, the European Commission will make billions available to member states to support reform and investment. Each country must submit a national recovery plan that details how they will use the funding, which collectively is made up of up €312.5bn in grants and €360bn in loans.
Each national proposal must ensure at least 37 per cent of the money is used to support climate efforts and at least 20 per cent must help the digital transition.
All EU member states have since backed the Commission’s recovery plan, but there was some initial resistance from the "frugal four" of Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden.
“I think that it will be enough and I would also say it has to be enough,” Mr Kurz told the Globalsec 2021 Bratislava Forum.
“Austria and other countries in the European Union, the so-called ‘frugal’ countries, were quite sceptical about the recovery fund at the beginning. We agreed in the end because we think that the package is good. We think the decision was good and we think that it was necessary to invest a lot of money to kick-start the economy.
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Lea Wittenborg, right, tests her colleague Annika Tschirbs at the Engel pharmacy in Soest, Germany. Germany's coronavirus infection rate dropped to its lowest level in nearly two months on Friday. AP Photo -
Residents queue at a sports hall to get vaccinated against the coronavirus disease in Berlin, Germany. Reuters -
A woman wearing a face mask walks on a bridge over the river Main in Frankfurt, Germany. AP Photo -
People are vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in Barcelona, Spain. Spaniards under 60 were invited to receive a vaccination this week, with a target set to vaccinate 70 percent of Spain's population by the end of August. Getty Images -
Tourists leave the international airport of Heraklion upon their arrival to spend their holidays on the island of Crete. Greece kickstarts its tourism season on May 14, with both the government and travel operators hoping the lure of sun, sand and sea will bring a sorely needed revenue boost. AFP -
People visit the Acropolis Museum, as museums open following the easing of measures against the spread of the coronavirus disease in Athens, Greece. Reuters -
A drone photo of participants of a march to express dissatisfaction with the coronavirus restrictive measures in Den Bosch, the Netherlands. EPA -
Preparations are underway on the beach of Bagno Elena in Naples, Italy, as the historic seaside resort of Posillipo will reopen to the public this weekend. EPA -
Employees attend a meeting at the Paris Zoological Park in the Bois de Vincennes before the reopening in France. Reuters -
People queue outside a mass vaccination center in Paris, France. Reuters
“But we would have not agreed to a permanent debt union and we do not want to repeat it several times. We think that it was a tool necessary at this time, but nothing we should repeat quite often,” Mr Kurz said.
Funds from the facility are set to be made available very soon, as the plans of each member states are scrutinised.
“Yes, I think it is more than enough. It is OK that we did it, but it is more than enough and now we should not discuss if we need more. We should focus more on the debate [about] where to invest.”
