A Commission proposal to halve EU funding for school milk has been opposed by the European Parliament. Faced with a proposal that would require member states to match funds provided by the EU, MEPs called for the EU to foot 75% of the cost of the school milk fund with member states meeting the balance. Currently, the EU finances 95% of the scheme at a cost of some 91million euros a year to the EU budget. At least 5 million children throughout Europe benefit from EU subsidised milk. The final decision on the level of support from the Community budget will be taken by EU agriculture ministers. The proposal and the resolution are available from Europarl.
The European Parliament has called on the international community including the EU to respond rapidly to the famine in Ethiopia and Eritrea. The resolution approved by MEPs also urges the authorities in both countries to take steps to halt the conflict in the region and to cooperate fully in the transport and delivery of food aid. The resolution notes that the EU plans to supply 432,000 tons of food aid to Ethiopia, which represents more than half of the official Ethiopian request.