The European Solar Telescope offers unique and novel opportunities for solving some of the long-standing problems related to solar flares, such as the slow evolution of the stored energy preceding the flare, the rapid deposition in the chromosphere during the flare impulsive phase, and the response of the chromosphere as the atmosphere responds. The focus of EST on the solar chromosphere - where flare radiation is intense and flare-related magnetic changes likely to be significant, will lead to unique insights. This talk overviews some of the science topics identified by Working Group 6 on Solar Flares and Eruptive Events.