Remarks by Executive Vice-President Virkkunen and Commissioner Brunner on the EU Critical Communication System

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to today's read-out of the College meeting.

Today, we adopted two proposals linked to the establishment of an EU Critical Communication System for first responders.

Today's proposal is about Europe's impact in the ground. When Europe faced fire, floods and major security threats, it´s first line responders defended it. Firefighters, doctors, police, entire rescue teams risked their lives so that lives could be saved. 

They have done so with the strongest dedication that we could all see. When fire and flood and other disasters are raging we know that time is crucial. Every second counts.

But these heroes are often met with real operational obstacles because natural disasters, major industrial accidents, and security threats do not respect national boundaries. Our immediate  operational response cannot afford to either.

When such crises and tragedies occur, we need fast, reliable and secure communication. 

While Member States have robust national emergency networks, these systems often stop at the border. This is a critical operational gap when teams are deployed side by side across countries.

This what this proposal is about: We will ensure that our emergency services have the means to exchange critical data and issue real-time operational instructions across borders without interruption.  So that they can save lives and have all the support needed. 

Concretely - the European Union Critical Communication System, the EUCCS will support more than 5 million first responders across Europe in their daily life-saving work and in major emergency situations. 

It will strengthen Europe's capacity to respond not only to largescale crises or terrorism, but also to everyday incidents: accidents, fires, missing persons cases, and crime.