Strasbourg, 06/04/2006 (Agence Europe) - On 6 April, the European parliament approved the proposal allowing for Community aid to be paid to poultry and egg producers suffering as a result of bird flu. The urgency procedure which was applied will allow Member States to adopt the regulation at the Agriculture Council meeting on 25 April. The proposal allows for exceptional market support measures, 50% co-financed by the Community budget, for poultry keepers struggling because of the fall in consumption in Europe. The few amendments adopted will allow the completion of the initial proposal, by: - confirming that vaccination, along with culling, can be a central plank of a strategy to eradicate the virus; - stating that the exceptional market support measures had to avoid any unnecessary suffering for the livestock (it is better to by hatching eggs than remove one-day old chicks from the market); - highlighting the need for “objective” awareness-raising campaigns explaining properly the real risks for human and animal health; - calling on Member States to avoid competition distortions if they decide to involve producers in the financing of market measures. Finally, MEPs stressed that export refunds were inadequate for the task of remedying disturbances of market conditions.