A proposal put forward by Dublin MEP Emer Costello for a new
?¬3.5 billion fund to help the most deprived people in Europe has won the backing of a key committee within the European Parliament.
The Employment and Social Affairs Committee has voted in favour of Ms Costello’s report, which recommends a specific fund to provide food and material aid such as
‘starter packs’ for the homeless to charities and NGOs in Ireland and across Europe.
The original scheme put forward by the European Commission last year suggested setting the fund at
?¬2.5 million. However, Ms Costello recommended that the figure be increased to
?¬3.5 billion to provide real help for those living on the margins of society.
The new scheme, entitled Fund for European Aid for the Most Deprived (FEAD) will be rolled out over a seven-year period starting in 2014, if it gets the thumbs up from the European Parliament and member states.
It will replace and expand the current EU food programme which has been running since 1987.
Before drafting the report, Ms Costello consulted with 100 representatives of Irish NGOs, statutory bodies and local authorities on their vision for the fund.
Speaking from Brussels, she said that unfortunately, there was more need than ever to help impoverished people.
“In 2010, there were 300,000 people in Ireland suffering from what’s described as extreme material deprivation; in other words, they cannot put a proper meal on the table three days a week,
? said the Labour MEP.