Brussels, 29/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - At the Agriculture Council in Luxembourg on 28 June, Dacian Cioloº asked the member states to take their responsibilities, following the announcement that the budget of the food aid programme for the poorest people will be slashed for 2012. The European Commission has come in for criticism since its announcement last week of the drop in funds to this programme, from €500 to €113 million next year, due to a decision of the European justice system further to a complaint from Germany. If the Commission has been obliged to make this decision, the agriculture commissioner explained, it is due to a “blocking minority” of six member states (Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark and the Czech Republic), which are adamant that the programme in question should no longer come under the CAP, but should move to social policy.
The Commission has proposed a “solution” to bring back a programme of €500 million for 2012 and following years, Cioloº pointed out. “The money exists, but the Commission cannot use it if the governments do not give it their approval”, he stressed, calling on the member states to “state publicly whether or not they wish to continue this programme”. “If they do not wish to, let them tell the poorest people, let them tell the charities”, he added.
For more than 20 years, more than 18 million people have benefited from more than 440 tonnes of food. This assistance, the European commissioner stressed, represents between 50% and 80% of the resources of the national food banks and “saying that they can do without it would not be something they would like to hear, or could accept”. (Cor.-L.C./transl.fl)