More than a hundred MEPs from the EPP, S&D, Renew Europe, Greens/EFA, and The Left, as well as around 20 members of the European Committee of the Regions, 70 mayors of European capitals and cities, and a dozen NGOs published an open letter on Friday 23 April, in which they call for a strengthening of EU action in the fight against homelessness in Europe in advance of the Porto Social Summit on 7 and 8 May.
In this letter addressed to the President of the European Council, the Portuguese Prime Minister, and the Ministers of the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO), the signatories ask for the addition of a specific target on the reduction of homelessness in the context of poverty reduction, a criterion that is currently missing in the Action Plan on the implementation of the European pillar of social rights (see EUROPE 12671/2).
They also call for homelessness to be taken into account in the ‘European Semester’ budgetary process through a follow-up on the social scoreboard for the six-month process. Above all, the signatories call for a target to end homelessness in the EU by 2030.
Belgium and Spain are calling for more. On the same day, Belgium and Spain published a joint document ahead of the Summit. They also call for the strengthening of the monitoring of social issues through quantitative goals in the framework of the ‘European Semester’ (notably on homelessness). They propose an early alert mechanism to initiate in-depth discussions in the EU Council, similar to what is done in the case of macroeconomic imbalances.
To view the letter: https://bit.ly/3vmSAKu
To consult the joint Belgian-Spanish document: https://bit.ly/2QAZAEu (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)