Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, said:
The advisors provide a detailed analysis of the many challenges we have been facing in the last months and give clear recommendations on how we can best move forward together. Only if we join forces and follow the guidance of scientific and ethical advice can we recover from this pandemic and ensure we will be prepared for the future.
The advisors provide a set of recommendations that will help to prevent and pre-empt the emerging infectious diseases globally, enhance coordination across EU Member States and internationally and strengthen systems of preparedness and management. Additionally, the advisors look at how we can best uphold fundamental rights and social justice in times of a pandemic. Finally, they advise the Commission to address systemic issues linked to health crises, most notably in the fields of sustainability and social justice.
As pandemics do not stop at EU borders, the opinion recommends the establishment of a standing EU advisory body for health threats and crises and a joint early-response mechanism to contain epidemics and pandemics. The COVID-19 pandemic has also shown the need for strong coordination in the field of research, as well as with the development and implementation of medical and social measures. Initiatives similar to the ERAvsCorona Action Plan can facilitate such research coordination at a European level.
The advisor’s opinion advises policy making by the European Commission in relation to pandemics and its recommendations have informed the plans for a European Health Union: Stronger EU preparedness and response for health crises, presented by the Commission today.
The Opinion builds on a first joint “Statement on scientific advice to European policy makers during the COVID-19 pandemic” (June 2020) and the EGE’s “Statement on European Solidarity and Protection of Fundamental Rights in the COVID-19 Pandemic” (April 2020). The advisors’ collaboration is planned to continue in 2021, with a third joint advice on how Europe can develop towards stronger resilience to crises in general.