The Council of the European Union has approved a 504 million euro credit for Hungary, within the framework of the EU’s SURE programme to protect jobs in countries hit hard by the coronavirus epidemic, the finance ministry said on Saturday.
The European Commission’s instrument for temporary Support to mitigate Unemployment Risks in an Emergency (SURE) was launched on August 24, and has disbursed 87.8 billion euros to 17 member states. The instrument has been created to support countries hit by the coronavirus epidemic, by issuing loans to support short-term work schemes and other measures.
The applicants are scheduled to receive around half of the support this year, and the other half in early 2021.
The credit, available with favourable conditions, will refinance job protection and job health protection measures introduced after February 1, 2021, the ministry said.
In the statement, the finance ministry noted that the Hungarian government had already provided aid to some 900,000 jobholders, by grants to help their positions on the labour market or training support.
In the featured photo illustration: Finance minister Mihály Varga. Photo by Zsolt Szigetváry/MTI
