The European Union Commissioner for Justice Michael McGrath hosted a meeting in Brussels on the situation across the European Union with respect to the guardianship of children whose parent has convicted of killing the other. This was facilitated by Kathleen Funchion MEP.

This is related to Article 24 "The Rights of the Child" in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union which includes the text:
“1. Children shall have the right to such protection and care as is necessary for their well-being"
and
“2. In all actions relating to children, whether taken by public authorities or private institutions, the child’s best interests must be a primary consideration.”. 

The focus of the meeting was to discuss how this situation (the aftermath of a parent killing another parent) is handled in other European jurisdictions. The meeting highlighted the need for legal research in the area of guardianship of children whose parent has convicted of killing the other and for data gathering as to the prevalence of this terrible situation. 

Taking Ireland as a baseline would indicate approximately 700 children across the EU are put in this situation every year.