A fairer and more sustainable Europe will be the hallmark of a successful recovery, PES Europe ministers said today as they met by videoconference ahead of tomorrow’s GAC Council.

Meeting Chair and German Minister of State for Europe, Michael Roth, said:

“Our cities and regions are seeing a return to life. Services, shops, and schools are step by step reopening. Economic activity is restarting. But this is certainly not back to business as usual.

“We are at a delicate moment. We must act to offer support and certainty, whilst also looking ahead to the Europe we want. This means progressing the recovery with a green, digital, and social transition.

“Our immediate priorities must be to invest in treatment against the virus and to offer financial assistance to Member States and economic sectors which have been hit hardest, particularly transport, tourism, hospitality, and culture. This rightfully calls for a significant financial package, one which must be used to bring us closer to our environmental, social, digital, and democratic goals. We want these goals to be the cornerstones of an ambitious European recovery plan, for which Germany and France have tabled an initiative.”

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