- “Thank you very much. And first of all, thank you very much for putting not only pertinent, but I would say also encouraging questions Because of course you put the finger on the point. But at the same time, this is also what motivates us to do what we have to do. So I think and it's also what we will bring back then to our political masters. I will go one by one. I start with MEP Sokol. When you mentioned the work on the CMA, which obviously is now led by DG Santer, but you mentioned more specifically how would you do and could we, if I understood you right? Could we also take a coordinating role for the general stockpiles, also for the CMA stockpiles? First of all, thank you for the trust for thank you for even putting that question because let's say. That depends very much on whether the member states would entrust us with that role, because the member states have national stockpiles and these are often contingency Pogba's. Whereas we look at the CMA, CMA, CMA rather as insurance stockpiles, something that hopefully we will not use, whereas a contingency stockpiles should be used when the, let's say, medicines are up. And of course, there should be a solidarity idea. So I very much can relate to your idea whether this is an entrusted or accepted by member States. As a second question, we would certainly always make a distinction between what is a national and therefore contingent stockpile when solidarity should kick in and what is an MCM stockpile often held by member states in member states for the EU, but which is hopefully not to be used or not always to be used? Let's say we hope for that, but I think this is as far as I can go in my answer capacity.”
Public and private sectors role in healthcare services
- “So this is where we also will intensify. This is not something which we will do alone, although for procurement we can, but we will work with many other actors within the Commission. Of course, with member States in particular, but also with NATO and also the eeaS. So it's a it's a unified approach that we have to look at. So it's but we play a part which is not an unimportant part in. From the health perspective, from the military, it's a very important part for them, but not the only one. So this is a bit. Honourable members eh. The broad lines, the core of the idea is to step up preparedness. And this preparedness means we have to go from the end to end approach. We cannot say we are prepared if we have not started with surveillance, if we haven't invested innovation and so on and so on. So this whole is this whole line. The pipeline is important. And that of course. And although Mr. Serafin is of course presenting that hopefully now in half an hour, uh, to the Parliament, the MFF proposal, I think it is fair to say that, Of course, we are also aware that what I'm now explaining is of course, under this MFF going until the next two years, we have sufficient funding for that at least to launch some of the pilots, but some of them will have to be continued or scaled up because we often go now only on the first scoping measures in the first pilots, and then we will see.”
Relations with NATO
- “But that would be the window under which we hope to be doing the research and the development, as well as under the, um, Horizon Europe. Again, for me the most important is at this stage, the eligibility of our actions is this eligibility pipeline preserved as it is now with the three funds. So this is a bit where I think we will be going. And I hope that, um, uh, is is a good starting point, but I, as I said, I would count on you to make sure that, um, this is also then allocated in order to allow us to do what we have to do and what we do today. Now, on the you also ask us on the diagnostics hub, the diagnostics, um, is um, a little bit where we have not necessarily weak spot but where we need to intensify our efforts, we would like to create this platform. It's a platform approach, a little bit similar to what we have with the Vaccines hub, so that we have academia, research institutes, but also member states, others in different actors who would help us to, um, to respond faster if we if we have something which we don't know yet and that would be inscribed also in this 100 day mission, but they would then work really as a platform based, um, test environment to quickly adopt, to adapt, like, um, diagnostics for new types of pathogens, which we might not have.”
EU research funding
- “These are platforms with centers of excellence of academia, but also real experts, um, and member states as well, where we want to. I mean, make sure that on this 100 days mission, either as therapeutics, as diagnostics, or for the vaccines, we would have a platform that can accelerate and help us. If you have that, you still need the manufacturing capacity. It's good to have an MCM developed, but it has to be scaled up. It has to be available. Right. And that's where we want to deepen the work with our private sector, which means we have something which we call ramp up. And that means a a launch of a tender where we will ask who is volunteering of telling us as, as industry, what do you have as capacity? We will make sure that confidentiality is secured, but also to say, are you ready? Do we have the overview whom we can use in Europe? And I have to stress in Europe for the manufacturing acceleration. Um, this is quite important because we didn't have that. And that of course cost time in a pandemic or in a situation we didn't have that in, in Covid. So that is also to ensure that we continue on that. And then of course, stockpiling, uh, where we also want to go much deeper with member states, analyze it better. What are the new needs? What could be stockpiled or not? Or better, not in a stockpile.”
Public and private sectors role in healthcare services
- “There's a whole annex that we had put out with a lot of initiatives, but also questions on which we work very closely with member states, obviously. Um, that brings me to another part of strength of work, which is cooperation. You can't do anything without either the private or the member states or the experts, the health experts. You need to work with what we would call the whole of society, whole of government. And that means definitely also the same approach with member states. So we also have in our strategy, of course, not forgotten the cooperation with our global partners. We have a network of global partners. And we also do know that even though we concentrate and focus on having preparedness within the union, threats can either from inside or outside. And then we also need to make sure that we act outside before it really hits us inside. So that's where you also will have some corporations trends there. One corporation which is quite dear to me is civil military cooperation. I just came this morning from another platform. Another table on that with all kinds of different actors. It is quite clear that we will have in countermeasures also very often dual countermeasures, countermeasures that can be used either for the civilian population but also in a in a mass casualty, but in a armed conflict also very much for the armed forces.”
Artificial Intelligence for military purposes
- “We on the basis of trust as we do today. You also know that of course, the Parliament is an observer also in our era board so as to know what's going on. And we, as I said, always happy to share. Um, we also have to draw lessons learned because we had one, which you meant pull incentive case, which didn't work because simply the money was not enough. It was not attractive enough for the industry in order to then, you know, deliver. So that is also lessons learned. That's why we go now for accelerators to say we go from A to Z so that we create that market. Um, you also asked about equitable access, which is, I think, something my commissioner would also very much subscribe to. And also, um, president von der Leyen. And you said you're not having that much of global access in the strategy. I think we have a chapter on global partnerships, which is very important for us, and we are expanding our global partnerships as a network. You know that we also support multilateral organizations on that. But we, in all fairness, have to say we do so with DG, in part because they have the funding for that. But we work very, very hand in hand. And I think that is I think this shouldn't be a question. We do and we hope to be continued to go. Um.”
State Aid · EU policy on sustainability criteria in public funding
- “We also will have something which is different, which is a mobile app for diagnosing others. But this is more for the known part here. This is more for the unknown part and where we will need to accelerate. So this is a bit the philosophy behind that diagnostics hub which we have to set up. Um, then I think there was a question from um, Commissioner, um, Vega on, on the part you mentioned, but you also said, can we tap different, uh, funding sources? And you mentioned in particular the 1.5, uh, that member states can go can use for, um, um, for preparedness in general. And indeed, many think about infrastructure clearly. And that's a bit my personal view, but I'm saying it to many in the NATO environment. Of course, it would be very helpful if NATO could clarify that, uh, within this 1.5, which is for preparedness. Health can be part of the preparedness. Because then when you think when we talked about a dual use, dual use MCM for Cbrn that would allow member states to say, well, go and help us with the joint procurement because that is counting. They might be finding an incentive to do so. But that is, of course, what each member states have to decide on its own.”
Relations with NATO
- “Honestly, we have the cases already. We had that in the past years. They are not going down. We will have that also in Europe. Then you have antimicrobial resistance. I think for you as some committee members, I don't have to explain that, but it is also an issue that is quite relevant if you think about an armed conflict. Because when we look at Ukraine, we know what this what is means of antimicrobial resistance. And then as I said, we have armed conflict and Cbrn threats or chemical, biological, nuclear threats, mass casualty possibility threats. And here is having a mandate for the full range of the CPR. And this is where we based our strategy on. And therefore I would like to start with surveillance mechanisms, threat analysis. And they are one of the mechanisms that we have put forward is a wastewater surveillance system, which we would like to intensify and formalise within Europe, but also then expand on a voluntary basis globally. Because honestly, you know that since Covid that surveillance we have wastewater is quite a good early warning. Uh, canary in the mine, uh, tool, um, we also want to enhance early detection through one of the other actions is generation of mobile labs, detection labs. So it's not only detecting but also hopefully then classifying the threat as much as we know the category.”
Antimicrobial resistance
- “So I, I use this occasion, I'm sorry to say, of appealing to you as the Sun Committee to also make sure that the health security sector is not forgotten when we discuss the overall MFF, which is obviously a very important challenge for all of us. But I think there we do have, um, as I said, not only for one segment of society, but for several segments of the society. Something to, Will do. I will not go into detail because I'm quite sure there might be some questions, and I will be only able to say something on the structures, the the amounts and all of this you will hear from the master, so that's fine. But I think it's fair to say that we have worked quite intensively on ensuring that we have certain access to funds. We have today multiple funds, and I think we will also have access to multiple funds in the future. So I think I would more or less stop here and then rather hope to be able to react to your questions. Thank you very much for your attention, honourable members.”
Public and private sectors role in healthcare services · Size of EU budget
- “And that is what we meant with the accelerator is is one stop, which we could have one stop shop where we will look at the different, um, steps in the way of that pipeline, not alone, but also with partners like EIB or with EMA, uh, to work together and alert when we need to take the next step. But that is actually in a, in a, in a nutshell, a bit this, this idea and therefore the, the political ideas also to de-risk development so that there is more money going into innovation and and research at a very early stage. So that's a bit what is behind then? Mep indicates Commissioner you mentioned um clearly. Thank you for that. That is here is an authority has been part of the security ecosystem. Indeed. And this concept of health security is much wider. We know that gives me a little bit. You put a question first on the budget and then which is also, I think I heard by others as well, but also on the diagnostics. Let me say what I can say at this stage, already on the budget today we are using, um, different funds. We are not just having the EU for health. Let's face it, we also use Horizon Europe and we had for the stockpile, uh, the fund of rescue where we stockpiled quite a lot for 1.2 billion.”
EU research funding
- “Well, if you run other stocks. Yes, of course we have capacity. But it's more a question of whether it's accepted. You also put me a question on the accelerator and not only you, but also MEP under Titus as well. Commissioner Titus, the accelerator is indeed something which is a bit of a lessons learned in the sense that we said we have this pipeline approach from end to end, and especially when we go for and which we do now very much with innovators, we see that they have difficulties along this way. We might give them, together with the EIB, often risk capital. We have a partnership very well on Hera invest with uh, with one of the few, I think, risk capital approaches with the EIB and the Commission where we will spur innovative procurement. But that doesn't mean then they have also the capacity or the partner to manufacture. And that doesn't mean that they will have the, um, the authorization. So all of this is part of that pipeline, and also later that they have a guarantee or at least a certain market, even if they invest in a niche MCM, which we think we need, but for which is no public market, that there will be some purchases afterwards.”
State Aid
- “Just at the end there, I thought it was a very relevant question about disinformation. This is a, of course, um, key issue. What you said is, is here properly equipped, properly fitted out for this? Less well, I think that we can see that it is. But my main concern is that perhaps we might have a vaccine, but, uh, perhaps the vaccine might not be accepted, not because it's not effective, but because there's a disinformation campaign which was undermined. The trust between citizens and the commission, or between citizens and the public health administrations in the member states. We have tackled this issue to some extent in the strategy. But if I'm to be perfectly frank, I think what we what we are able to do. Is provide data, share data with our partners and the agencies or the CDC or medical agency and so on. What we can do. But at the moment I'm discussing with colleagues in the Commission, the DG and the GSC as well, because they have the resources to combat disinformation in general, and that includes attempts to undermine our system of democracy. And that's the key idea in your question, I think.”
Disinformation & online freedoms · Vaccination
- “Or NATO could also clarify a bit more that there is these discussions ongoing. I think is clear. Um, when we discuss with counterparts, they, they they mentioned that as well, but it's not yet perhaps as structured as it could be then. Mep Metz, you mentioned on transparency. Um, yeah. We I mean, first of all, I should say like this transparency is the most important one for everybody. You cannot work on on health and health security if you have no Some transparency because with that you will not have trust. And trust is. And then we come afterwards to MEP. Castillo's question is a baseline. Trust also in form goes both ways obviously for member states that they can disclose what they have, what they don't have, what they might have as strategic stockpiles or not, but also transparency from the industry side to say, what do they have as availabilities? What are their production capacity, which is a competitiveness issue for them. So trust and supremacy is important. Us as commissioner vis a vis the Parliament. It's it's it's it's a given. We always had, I think, been giving a lot of information and um, especially also on our, um, procurement, um, I think be it in, in, in plenary, be it in specific committee settings and of course, very happy to continue doing so also on ongoing contracts. So if there's interest on that, so certainly on on on trust, we will want to continue on the way.”
Transparency requirements of EU institutions · Transparency requirements for interest groups
- “Well, it's not about whether a vaccine is considered to be acceptable or not. It's the way that our trust within the society can be undermined and they need our help. When it comes to facts and scientific information that we can't help with. But, um, I would, I think at that point like to share that with you as well, because you have contacts in your constituencies, your regions and so on. And I think that could help if there is a large scale attack of this kind against the European Union, then we all need to stand together. We all need to make sure that, uh, we, we have the correct basis of scientific fact, uh, for our approach, uh, it's difficult for us to tackle things, uh, the level that you've mentioned. But you, I think, can do that. Uh, it needs to be seen, I think, politically rather than scientifically. I do share your concerns, but as I say, I don't think that we have the necessary resources to take that approach to what is a political issue. Thank you.”
Disinformation & online freedoms · Vaccination · Foreign interference in Europe