The Irish National Action Plan Against Poverty and Social Exclusion, covering the period 2001-03, is the initial Irish contribution to an EU-wide process made possible by a provision in the Treaty of Amsterdam proposed by Ireland.
The Irish plan provides an overview of a wide variety of initiatives and is grounded in the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness and the national development plan and the actions ensuing from these programmes. The plan is also the result of a wide consultative process.
The deadline for submission of the plan – 1 June 2001 – preceded the completion of the ongoing review of the national anti-poverty strategy. In practical terms, this meant that the wide ranging policy developments being considered under the NAPS review could not be reflected in the action plan. This point was made explicitly clear to the EU Commission when the plan was being submitted.
Following the submission of the report, the EU produced a draft joint inclusion report which drew on the national action plans submitted by all of the member states. The draft report provides a useful summary of the main features of the national plans and a valuable overall analysis of the initial steps being taken by member states to apply an open method of co-ordination to combating poverty and social exclusion throughout the EU. My Department is currently engaged in discussions with the EU Commission in relation to a number of issues arising from the draft report.