Article 1 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union states: ‘Human dignity is inviolable. It must be respected and protected.’ The austerity policy implemented in Greece, however, has resulted in survival problems for students studying at Greek universities.

The financing granted last year ensured the provision of free meals to 2 100 students at the University of Crete, in Rethymnon. In the academic year 2015-2016, seven hundred students are being deprived of their right to free meals due to the continued implementation of the troika-imposed MoU in Greece. Given the increase in VAT from 13% to 23% for food services, the financing granted to the University from the State budget is insufficient to cover the food costs for all eligible students, as determined on the basis of income-related considerations. Therefore, the policies dictated by the troika-imposed MoU have led hundreds of students to a dead end, given also that the current crisis has rendered them unable to meet even basic needs required to live a decent life.

Given the above, I would like to ask the Commission:

How could the Commission help secure funds from EU programmes for all eligible students to be provided with free meals?

Source: European Parliament

Answer given by Ms Thyssen on behalf of the Commission

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) underpins the new stability support programme for Greece and, as such, is not imposed but agreed between the Greek Government and the European Stability Mechanism (ESM).

The Commission is fully aware of the social conditions in Greece and sees their improvement as essential to achieve sustainable and inclusive growth. The Commission, as a partner in the negotiations on the MoU, has paid particular attention to the social fairness of the programme to ensure that the adjustment is spread equitably and the most vulnerable are protected. The Commission has published(1) its assessment of the programme’s social impact which concludes that, if implemented fully and timely, the measures foreseen in the programme will help Greece return to stability and growth in a financially and socially sustainable way, and will contribute to meet the most pressing social needs and challenges in Greece.

The European Commission offers emergency aid through the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD), providing food and basic material assistance to the most deprived. Under this programme, Greece is entitled to aid worth EUR 281 million for the period 2014-2020. In the framework of the FEAD students at risk of extreme poverty may benefit from the Hellenic Operational Programme ‘Food and Basic Material Assistance’, which aims at alleviating the worst forms of poverty by distributing food and/or basic material assistance to the most deprived persons.

The eligibility criteria to benefit from the Hellenic Operational Programme ‘Food and Basic Material Assistance’ are set out in the Greek Ministerial Decision No 1066 of 5 June 2015.

(1) http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/assistance_eu_ms/greek_loan_facility/pdf/assessment_social_impact_en.pdf

Source: European Parliament