450 COMPETITION LAW IN TOURISM general escape clause included on the Stability and Growth Pact will continue to be applied in 2022 and is expected to be deactivated as of 2023. This is an opportunity for Member States to further support tourism in case this sector is a priority for their economies. E.2.2. The importance of State aid Pursuant to the Commission’s coordinated response in 13 March 2020 and the acknowledgement that the COVID-19 crisis has caused a serious disturbance to the entire EU economy, on 19 March 2020, the State AidTemporary Framework was adopted (“Temporary Framework”)91. It should be noted that the preexisting legal framework applicable to state aid continues to be applicable. The Temporary Framework aims at enabling the Member States to counter the exceptional factual circumstances. The Temporary Framework has already been amended five times92 and it may be amended again notably to extend its duration (currently is 31st December 2021). Moreover, the Commission prolonged the validity of certain State aid rules which would otherwise expire at the end of 2020 and made certain targeted adjustments to the existing rules with a view to mitigate the economic and financial impact of the coronavirus outbreak on companies, notably to clarify the concept of “undertaking in difficulty”93. We have observed a progressive widening of the scope of state aid measures, which notably include direct grants, guarantees on loans, recapitalisations of undertakings and wage subsidies to employees to avoid lay-offs94 and a widening the scope of beneficiaries. An extremely impressive number of state aid measures still in October 2020 represented almost 3 trillion euros has been notified by the Member States under the same framework95 and approved by the Commission within a record time. And one guesses that the number and amount of notifications continues to thrive. 91 Press release available at: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_496. 92 Temporary Framework for state aid measures to support the economy in the COVID-19 outbreak, as adopted on 19 March 2020 and amended on 3 April 2020, 8 May 2020 and 29 June 2020, 13 October 2020 and 28 January 2021 (“Temporary Framework”), available at: https://ec.europa.eu/competition/state_aid/what_is_ new/covid_19.html. 93 Press release available at: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/pt/ip_20_1247. 94 The Temporary Framework is designed to be compatible with article 107(3)(b) of the TFEU. 95 According to the speech of Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, available at https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_20_1805.
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