EU says it now has €1.85trn firepower to fight Covid-19 economic devastation across the continent

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, puts on a protective face mask in the hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, today. Pic: Geert Vanden Wijngaert/Bloomberg

The European Commission says Europe has learnt from the Covid-19 pandemic and plans for "a huge” recovery €1.85 trillion programme that will be funded by it raising billions on sovereign bond markets for the first time to prevent economic devastation across the continent.