The clock is ticking, there will be no extension. The money must be spent and accounted for this year.

• On May 27, 2025, the Council of Ministers adopted the Population Protection and Civil Defence Program for 2025-2026.
• In 2025-2026, PLN 16.7 billion and PLN 17.2 billion, respectively, were allocated for the implementation of the Programme.
• The money must be spent and settled this year, because there will be no extension.

The Population Protection and Civil Defence Programme for 2025-2026 is a key document that defines the priorities for actions aimed at ensuring the safety of residents and the country's preparation for crisis situations, as well as the methods of financing these actions.

In 2025-2026, PLN 16.7 billion and PLN 17.2 billion, respectively, have been allocated for the implementation of the Program. In the future, the Population Protection and Civil Defense Programs will be developed for a four-year period, with updates every two years.

The program covers six main thematic areas that strengthen the population protection and civil defense system in Poland.

The first is collective protection facilities , including protective structures, emergency shelters, and a central registry of such facilities. The second is logistical security and ensuring continuity of supplies , including replenishing resources and providing basic services in crisis situations.

The third area concerns the maintenance and development of civil protection entities, such as the National Rescue and Firefighting System (KSRG), the State Emergency Medical Services, and non-governmental organizations . This includes the purchase of rescue and logistics equipment and the implementation of humanitarian aid tasks.

Other areas include education, training and training facilities , including educational activities, training organisation and research and development in the field of civil protection.

The fifth area covers Secure State Communications and alarm, warning and notification systems , which are crucial in emergency situations.

The last, sixth area assumes the creation of a Civil Defence Corps - personnel and a national civil defence reserve, as well as the designation of entities carrying out these tasks.

According to a group of Law and Justice MPs, there are significant doubts about the feasibility of completing the investments and purchases within the planned timeframe. They submitted an interpellation to the Minister of Finance and Economy, stating that:

According to the current recruitment rules, these funds – both in the investment part (e.g. construction of protective facilities) and purchases (equipment, equipment) – must be spent and settled by the end of the current budget year, i.e. by December 31, 2025. Meanwhile, in many voivodeships, recruitment processes are only just beginning or are ongoing (e.g. in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, applications could be submitted until July 22), which means that local governments will have a very limited time to prepare, implement and settle investments.

In their opinion, some local governments will not be able to spend the funds in such a short time - especially in the case of tasks requiring tender procedures, obtaining permits or carrying out construction works, and "in the current timeframe, even well-prepared local governments may have difficulties in completing tasks on time."

They point out that it is possible to extend the deadline for spending and settling the subsidy, but this depends on the decision of the Minister of Finance, who must agree to transfer the funds to the next budget year.

In response to the interpellation, Deputy Minister Hanna Majszczyk informs that the instrument of extending the deadline for spending and settling subsidies is

unique character.