Looking at the proposed allocation of the funds, one finds that less than one-tenth of the total (55 bn) should be “allocated based on the severity of the socio-economic impacts of the crisis“ (under REACT-EU), which is presented as a top-up of current cohesion policy. The most important part of Next Generation EU is a new Recovery and Resilience Facility of €560 billion, whose purpose is to offer financial support for investments and reforms, including in relation to the green and digital transitions and the resilience of national economies, linking these to the EU priorities – but with no reference to the impact of shocks. The bulk of Next Generation EU should thus not be allocated to help absorb a shock, but to provide financial support for investment linked to EU priorities. This absence of a clear shock-absorption purpose has made it difficult for the Commission to justify the allocation of funding. The Commission has published detailed background information on a complicated formula used to pre-allocate most of the funds on the basis of the Commission’s spring forecast and past unemployment rates.