Brussels, 06/10/2010 (Agence Europe) - The European Union must do more to fight against homelessness and extreme poverty, and economic growth must not leave anyone out the equation. This is the message sent out by the Committee of the Regions (CoR) to the Presidency of the Council. Nonetheless, what is the best framework to provide public action guaranteeing a society of greater solidarity?
On Wednesday 6 October, Laurette Onkelinx, the Belgian vice prime minister in charge of social affairs, debated with local and regional European delegates, the social priorities of the Belgian Presidency. The adoption by the CoR of the own initiative of Tore Hult (PES, Sweden) formed the background to this fight against homelessness.
In his opinion, Tore Hult notes that the main difficulties in fighting homelessness can be located in the diversity of policies required and the sharing of responsibilities between the different public authorities. To advance in this struggle, there is one fundamental but necessary condition: efforts need to be coordinated at all the different levels of intervention and local, regional, national and inter-state levels need to work together. The rapporteur is therefore calling for a European strategy against homelessness, which necessitates a more active participation on the part of the European institutions in the elaboration and follow-up of the measures adopted. In this approach, Tore Hult includes the appeal by more than 95 MEPs who call on the Council to make an active commitment before the end of 2010 to resolve the question of homelessness by 2015 and subsequently calls on the Commission to implement an ambitious strategy to help the homeless in the EU.
Laurette Onkelinx is the first woman president of the Socialist group of the CoR and is a long-term member of the latter. Together with local and regional delegates, she concurred with the goals of the Council of Ministers responsible for social services of general interest (SSGI), in view of the forum on these services, organised by the Belgian Presidency on the 26 -27 October. Whilst recognising the essential role played by the SSGI in European societies, Laurette Onkelinx affirmed that “a legal framework exclusively inspired by logic of the market economy is not the appropriate mode for organising social services”. The Belgian Presidency would like a framework underpinned by quality and more legal security for the SSGI. (G.B./transl.fl)