Make Single Market crisis-proof by stopping unlawful border closures

A well-functioning Single Market, celebrating its 30th anniversary, is a cornerstone of the EU economy. The EPP Group will vote tomorrow for a new law which will prevent unlawful border closures in the future, as happened during the COVID pandemic, to ensure the smooth functioning of the EU internal market during the next crisis.

“As we learned from COVID-19, nobody is safe until everybody is safe. National approaches to border closures or export controls do not work”, warned Andreas Schwab MEP, who negotiated the European Parliament’s position on the Internal Market Emergency and Resilience Instrument, to be voted on on Wednesday.

“A major achievement for the EPP Group is the de-bureaucratisation of border crossings for workers. Through so-called ‘fast lanes’, crisis-relevant workers will be able to cross the border in the event of a crisis by filling out uniform, digital forms based on the example of the COVID QR code. The provision of the relevant proof, be it health or labour-related, would then take place digitally and in the same way throughout the EU”, added Schwab.

The Internal Market Emergency and Resilience Instrument will also allow businesses to play an active role in the next crisis. “Instead of burdening them with bureaucratic mandatory information requests from the European Commission, we have created incentives for businesses to voluntarily contribute to the solution of the crisis. They can voluntarily participate in so-called stress tests to check their resilience in the event of a crisis. At the same time, they can voluntarily provide the Commission with information on their stocks of crisis-relevant products”, concluded Schwab.