EU Presidency Statement - Explanation of Position: International Year of the Family

EU Presidency Explanation of Position on the FOLLOW-UP TO THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF THE FAMILY AND BEYOND, by the UK Mission to the UN on behalf of the European Union, UN General Assembly, Third Committee, New York

Mr Chairperson,

I have the honour on behalf of the European Union to make the following Explanation of Position on the resolution entitled "Follow-up to the International Year of the Family and beyond". The countries of Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey, Croatia, Albania, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, Liechtenstein, Ukraine, and the Republic of Moldova also align themselves with this explanation of position.

The European Union would like to thank the G77, and in particular the delegation of Qatar, as well as all other Member States who participated in the negotiations on this resolution for their constructive approach to this year's discussions.

The European Union attaches great importance to family-related issues. As far back as 1989 the European Commission published its first communiqué on family policies, and this has been followed by a number of important actions addressing such issues as parental leave, reconciling family and work life and improving the living conditions of vulnerable families.

The European Union recognises the crucial role of parents, carers and families in improving outcomes for children and young people and the need to provide support for them to do so. We share the view of many in this room about the valuable contribution that families make to strengthening our societies and the need to develop policies to support their role. But for these policies to be successful, they must also be inclusive. Across the European Union, as in the rest of the world, families have changed and continue to change with time - illustrating the fact that a family is a living, dynamic entity. In this regard, the European Union believes that we must all continue to recognise this diversity, as we did at the various UN conferences and summits of the 1990s, and that our ongoing policy discussion and development should similarly continue to reflect the diversity of family forms. We regret, therefore, that this resolution fails to do so.

The European Union remains fully committed to working with all United Nations Member States in developing a joint approach to supporting all children, all families and all family members. We look forward to future opportunities to reaffirm this shared commitment.

Thank you, Mr. Chairperson.

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• EU Presidency Statement - Commission for Social Development: Agenda Item 3b  (10/2/2006)