Irish Presidency of the EU to host informal meeting of ministers responsible for homelessness on 1 March

Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU Roundtable Discussion of EU Ministers with Responsibility for Homelessness

The Irish Presidency of the EU is hosting an informal meeting of ministers responsible for homelessness on 1st March 2013. FEANTSA, Eurodiaconia, Caritas Europa and Red Cross EU Office have sent a joint letter welcoming this initiative to the Irish Presidency. They formally wish the meeting every success and outline some key areas for discussion.

FEANTSA, Caritas Europa, Eurodiaconia and the Red Cross EU Office welcome the Irish Presidency of the EU Council’s announcement of an EU Roundtable Discussion of Ministers with Responsibility for homelessness, hosted by Minister Jan O’Sullivan TD, Minister for Housing and Planning, on the 1st March 2013 in Leuven.

In addition, a range of EU bodies and institutions have taken positions on homelessness in recent years. On 14th September 2011, the European Parliament adopted a Resolution calling for an EU strategy to monitor, support and coordinate the development of homelessness policies in the Member States. The Committee of the Regions and the European Economic and Social Committee have published own initiative opinions on homelessness, which are in line with the Parliament’s position.

The context outlined above demonstrates that homelessness is a pressing priority for member states. This was confirmed by the 2012 Annual Growth Survey, which reported increased homelessness in several countries as a result of the crisis [1]

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