Csaba Sógor calls for a Green Book of Care for the Elderly
Several documents regarding the social future of the EU were on debate in the first plenary sitting of the European Parliament in September.
Amongst other subjects, MEPs discussed the issue of long-term care for the elderly on Tuesday, September 7th.
DAHR’s MEP Csaba Sógor presented the opinion of the European People’s Party as he was the shadow-rapporteur on the subject. Here follows the MEP’s speech:
„All the member states face the problem of the aging population, so we need to pay more attention to the care of the growing number of elderly people.
Care for the elderly has different traditions in the southern member states where several generations live together and the problem is solved within the family, and the northern member states where institutionalized care is more wide-spread. The sustainability of the latter is doubtful due to the extending costs, the current economic situation and the accentuated aging of the population.
In Central and Eastern European states some form of institutionalized care is being conducted by NGOs and churches, but it is still scarce and the state does not support the development of this system.
The UK solved the problem of care for the elderly by the retraining of unemployed immigrant women. This practice can surely be useful in other member states as well. I would like congratulate Pervenche Berés and Elizabeth Lynne for the resolution and I would specially like to point out the part of the text that calls upon the European Commission to compile a green book based on the best practices within the EU so that all member states can employ the most adequate solutions to their possibilities so that they can ensure the eradication of ill-treatment and abuse of the elderly.”
DAHR’s MEP Csaba Sógor presented the opinion of the European People’s Party as he was the shadow-rapporteur on the subject. Here follows the MEP’s speech:
„All the member states face the problem of the aging population, so we need to pay more attention to the care of the growing number of elderly people.
Care for the elderly has different traditions in the southern member states where several generations live together and the problem is solved within the family, and the northern member states where institutionalized care is more wide-spread. The sustainability of the latter is doubtful due to the extending costs, the current economic situation and the accentuated aging of the population.
In Central and Eastern European states some form of institutionalized care is being conducted by NGOs and churches, but it is still scarce and the state does not support the development of this system.
The UK solved the problem of care for the elderly by the retraining of unemployed immigrant women. This practice can surely be useful in other member states as well. I would like congratulate Pervenche Berés and Elizabeth Lynne for the resolution and I would specially like to point out the part of the text that calls upon the European Commission to compile a green book based on the best practices within the EU so that all member states can employ the most adequate solutions to their possibilities so that they can ensure the eradication of ill-treatment and abuse of the elderly.”
