Green MEPs have called for the European Union to make a housing a priority. They have backed a new report on the right to affordable and decent housing voted on by the European Parliament today. This key report, drafted by the Greens/EFA, sets out an EU wide blueprint to tackle the EU wide housing crisis. Ciarán Cuffe Green MEP for Dublin says"Housing is in the news for all the wrong reasons. 700,000 people will sleep rough in Europe tonight. In Ireland, 8,000 people are without a home today." "Rents and costs are high. Many live in homes that are cold, damp and unaffordable. My colleague, Kim Van Sparrentak's report says this does not have to be the case. Everyone deserves decent and affordable housing.""The crux of the report says we must recognise housing as a fundamental right under EU law, end homelessness in the EU by 2030 and bring together our national strategies through the establishment of an EU framework for national homelessness. That won't help those who are homeless tonight in Brussels or Dublin, but it sends a strong message that Member States must do more." "The report also calls for an increase in the EU's deep renovation rate by 3% per annum. This would allow us to increase the energy efficiency of our social housing which will ensure lower energy bills for people at risk of poverty."Mr Cuffe went on to say "If we want to tackle the housing crisis and end homelessness, we must provide housing first to those who are homeless." "We must make the Renovation Wave a reality by retrofitting existing homes and bringing public housing up to an A energy rating. We need to build public homes in the numbers needed and learn from cities like Vienna and Helsinki that give housing the political priority deserves."In addition, I want to see European financial institutions take a more active role in providing the finance needed to increase our construction of public housing. The European Investment Bank and the other European Institutions can and should do more to solve the housing crisis in many cities around Europe, both in financing new-build construction and retrofitting existing housing." ENDS