After a voting session lasting more than 40 minutes, the European Parliament adopted the report by Borja Giménez Larraz (EPP, Spanish) on the housing crisis by 367 votes to 166, with 84 abstentions.
Numerous amendments had been tabled in an attempt to modify the report voted by the Special Committee on the Housing Crisis on 9 February (see EUROPE 13805/30).
The Left and Greens/EFA groups wanted to remove the criminalisation of squatting from the report, and to strengthen tenants’ rights with - among other things - provisions on rent controls. But they didn’t succeed.
The Left voted against, as did some of the Greens/EFA, a position regretted by the Chair of the European Parliament’s Special Committee, Irene Tinagli (S&D, Italian). In her opinion, the report contains some positive points for tackling the housing crisis.
For example, the report encourages “Member States to put in place affordable housing policies” and to tackle “empty dwellings, possibly changing the nature of buildings to make them residential”.
In the end, as the rapporteur said at a press conference, it was a “good day for housing”, and he welcomed the “broad support” for his proposal.
This was “the objective of this report, and we have achieved it by sending a strong message to the Commission”, stressed the Spanish Christian Democrat.
The “proposals from The Left and the Greens/EFA were - from my point of view - ideologically excessive and too interventionist”, he added.
For her part, Leïla Chaibi (The Left, French), accused the MEP of criminalising people who are homeless and unable to pay their rent. “Supporting legislation that criminalises those living in poor housing conditions and undermines essential tenant protection measures while claiming to be left-wing is a serious political mistake. By supporting a text denounced by civil society, the social democrats have served as ‘easy targets’ for the right”, she commented.
All the amendments tabled for the plenary vote were rejected on Tuesday, with the exception of an S&D request to devote €20 billion to the European Child Guarantee, although the language was weakened.
The final report calls for EU initiatives to combat rising prices and the housing shortage by supporting construction and renovation.
Among other things, the MEP insisted on tax incentives to enable young households to buy their own home.
On the subject of short-term rentals, the report calls for future legislation to strike a balance between the development of tourism and access to affordable housing, without strictly regulating these rentals, which are most often for tourists.
The future legislation “should set common objectives at EU level while leaving EU-countries, regions and local authorities the flexibility to design and implement measures adapted to their specific territorial realities and housing markets”.
To guarantee decent housing, MEPs want the Commission’s Affordable Housing Plan to earmark specific funds for renovation, to improve the energy performance of residential buildings and to combat energy poverty. All new dwellings should meet quality standards in terms of insulation, energy efficiency and air quality.
The European Parliament also “strongly condemns squatting” and demands stricter measures to protect owners.
At the same time, it calls on the Member States to strengthen the protection of tenants’ rights by “ensuring fair conditions and preventing disproportionate rent increases”.
The MEPs also want a package of simplification measures to reduce red tape in the housing sector. They want to see simpler permitting procedures, such as digital permit-granting procedures, and a 60-day deadline for granting permits.
Link to the adopted report: https://aeur.eu/f/l40 (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)