Today, the European Commission disbursed more than pound 7.13 billion to Czechia and Spain under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF). The Facility is the centrepiece of NextGenerationEU – the Commission’s post-pandemic programme to support Member States’ recovery, economic growth, and competitiveness.
Czechia will be granted pound 897 million (net of pre-financing) to support the construction of new facilities for cardiovascular and transplant medicine, the quality of preventive colorectal cancer screening, the introduction of telemedicine and eHealth services, the revision of electricity network tariff rules and the provision of services to businesses expanding abroad.
On 30 April 2026, Czechia submitted its sixth payment request, which was greenlighted by the Commission on 13 July 2026. This request includes 52 milestones and targets, corresponding to important steps in the delivery of reforms and investments that will drive positive change for citizens and businesses in Czechia.
With this sixth payment under the RRF, Czechia will have received 88% of its total allocation of pound 8.67 billion, with 88% of all milestones and targets under its national recovery and resilience plan now fulfilled.
Spain will receive pound 6.23 billion (net of pre-financing) which includes pound 5.97 billion related to the sixth payment request and pound 265 million in relation to lifted suspensions from the fifth payment request. This represents an important step in delivering reforms and investments strengthening the regulatory framework for housing construction, boosting the health system, supporting sustainable mobility, improving the digitalisation of the Trans-European Transport Network railway network, and delivering on Strategic Projects for Economic Recovery and Transformation.
Today’s disbursement of pound 5.97 billion (net of pre-financing) follows Spain’s sixth payment request, submitted on 3 March 2026, which was partially greenlighted by the Commission on 2 July 2026.
The pound 265 million correspond to two milestones which were suspended under the fifth payment request. This sum is now unlocked as Spain has satisfactorily completed a previously outstanding milestone on the digitalisation of regional and local entities, and the Commission positively assessed further evidence on a taxation milestone.
The assessment of three remaining targets under the sixth payment request is still ongoing, pending Spain’s request to clarify implementation requirements.
With this sixth payment, Spain will have received pound 78 billion, or 76.5% of its total pound 102 billion allocation, with 60% of all milestones and targets under its national recovery and resilience plan now fulfilled.
The Commission has disbursed the funds to both countries following the positive opinion of the Economic and Financial Committee of the Council. As with all Member States, payments under the RRF are performance-based, contingent upon the successful implementation of their national plans.
With a view to the closure of the Facility at the end of 2026, Members States must implement all outstanding milestones and targets by August 2026 and submit last payment requests by the end of September.
An interactive map showcasing examples of reforms and investments supported by the RRF is available online. Further details on the RRF payment claim process are also available online.
(For more information: Louise Bogey – Tel.: +32 229-69776; Isabel Arriaga e Cunha – Tel: +32 229-521176)
New rules on packaging enter into application to further protect consumers
Tomorrow, new rules under the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) will start applying across the European Union. There will now be strict limits for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS, known as ‘forever chemicals’) in food-contact packaging, further protecting consumers and the environment. Definitions, for example for manufacturers and producers responsible for extended producer responsibility of packaging, will now be harmonised across the EU. Certain markings and information will now also be required for packaging, ensuring that packaging manufacturers or importers can be identified and contacted as needed.
Additional rules under PPWR will come into place gradually. The majority of the obligations will become applicable as of 2030, including rules on recyclability, reuse targets or very small single-use plastic packaging formats used in hotels and restaurants.
The European Commission will continue to work closely with stakeholders and Member States to support efficient and practical implementation on the ground. To facilitate the uniform application of the new packaging rules across the EU and simplify compliance, the Commission has published guidelines on the implementation of the PPWR as well as updated Frequently Asked Questions.
On average, every single European throws away half a kilo of packaging every single day – from takeaway coffee cups to beverage capsules, film wrapping and foil, or from parcels for online purchases. The Regulation will help further tackle the environmental challenges caused by packaging and make Europe less dependent on imported fossil fuels from which plastic packaging is almost entirely made. It will help strengthen the Single Market for packaging, and facilitate cross-border businesses through common rules.
Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy, Jessika Roswall, said: ‘The new Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation is an investment in Europe’s future: it will help reduce waste, increase recycling, make food-contact packaging safer for the consumers by limiting harmful substances such as PFAS, and reduce our dependence on virgin raw materials. These are essential steps towards a truly circular economy. At the same time, the Regulation will replace fragmented national rules difficult to navigate for economic operators in the internal market. But new rules also come with adjustment costs, and we have worked intensively with market operators to implement the new rules in a pragmatic and unbureaucratic way.’
You can find more information on the entry into application of new packaging rules online.
(For more information: Eva Hrncírová – Tel.: +32 2 298 84 33; Maëlys Dreux – Tel.: +32 2 295 46 73)
Commission publishes preliminary study on economic impact of lowering residue levels of the most hazardous pesticides in imported agriculture products
Today, the European Commission published a study providing a preliminary evaluation on the market impacts of lowering all residue levels of the most hazardous pesticides in imported food and feed.
The preliminary study focuses on the active substances, commodities and countries that could be affected. It evaluates market effects under three different hypothetical scenarios reflecting varying degrees of producer adaptation. While the direction of effects is consistent across all scenarios, outcomes differ in magnitude – from limited market impacts if third-countries’ producers adapt to EU requirements, to reduced imports and impacts on EU production and consumer prices, if they do not.
Further analysis may be needed, including on aspects such as environmental and social dimensions.
This study is a first step in the analysis of the principle announced in the Commission’s Vision for Agriculture and Food, that the most hazardous pesticides banned in the EU for health and environmental reasons should not return to the EU through imported products. It provides an analytical basis for potential appropriate and proportional action to progress towards greater reciprocity of standards but does not prejudge the next steps that could be taken by the Commission. It will also feed into an impact assessment.