{"id":6841,"date":"2021-04-26T10:16:57","date_gmt":"2021-04-26T10:16:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greens-efa.eu\/dossier\/?p=6841"},"modified":"2021-09-23T12:32:26","modified_gmt":"2021-09-23T12:32:26","slug":"ending-homelessness-is-not-insurmountable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greens-efa.eu\/dossier\/ending-homelessness-is-not-insurmountable\/","title":{"rendered":"Ending homelessness is not insurmountable, if we work together"},"content":{"rendered":"
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26.04.2021<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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An Opinion by <\/strong>Kim Van Sparrentak<\/strong><\/a>, <\/strong>Katrin Langensiepen<\/strong><\/a>, <\/strong>Ernest Urtasun<\/strong><\/a> and <\/strong>Sara Matthieu, <\/strong><\/a>Greens\/EFA MEPs.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Homelessness is rising in the EU but it is not insurmountable, if European leaders, national governments, local authorities and all stakeholders work together. This is why, with the support of Europe\u2019s biggest cities, over 120 MEPs, Europe\u2019s regions and the main social NGOs, we are calling for the setting of an EU goal to end homelessness at the Porto social summit. <\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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It is becoming an often-quoted statistic, that\nclose to 700,000 people in the EU are sleeping rough or in homeless shelters\neach night, and that the number of homeless people has more than doubled in the\nlast decade. This is a trend we see all over Europe. While attention is\nfrequently drawn to these figures, that should not be an excuse for becoming\nnumb to them. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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There is an unfolding social emergency in\nEurope and without an adequate political response, it will only exacerbate the\nexisting pressures on housing. In the wake of the\npandemic, reducing poverty and social inequality has become the number one\nissue the EU should focus on for EU citizens according\nto a recent Eurobarometer<\/a>. So it makes sense to focus on homelessness: an\nextreme form of poverty<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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The temporary moratorium\non mortgage loan repayments that many Member States implemented in the COVID\ncontext are likely to be phased out soon. This will have a severe impact on\ndistressed households and can lead to an unprecedented peak of homelessness in\nEurope.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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The Porto\nSocial Summit<\/a> on 7-8 May is the occasion to not only endorse the European\nPillar of Social Rights Action Plan<\/a>, but to raise the bar when it comes to\nstrengthening the social dimension of the Union, via a commitment from leaders\nto address rising homelessness rates in Europe. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Together with over 120\nMembers of the European Parliament, we have sent an open\nletter<\/a> to the President of the European Council, the Portuguese Prime\nMinister, Social Affairs Ministers and the Heads of State of Government, ahead\nof the Social Summit and informal leaders summit on 8 May. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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This letter<\/a>,\nsent together with the Mayors and Vice-Mayors of many of Europe\u2019s largest\ncities, from Lisbon to Amsterdam to Zagreb[1]<\/sup><\/a>, with Members of the\nCommittee of the Regions, and with leading European social NGOs, contains a\nclear call for the setting of an EU goal to end homelessness by 2030. It\nsignals the willingness for the kind of multi-level collaboration required to\nreduce, prevent, and end homelessness for good. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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In its Communication on the Action Plan\non the European Pillar of Social Rights on 3 March, the European Commission\nacknowledged the sharp increase in homelessness. The European Commission also\nreferred to the fact that the European Parliament and stakeholders want the EU\nto set an objective to end homelessness by 2030, but the Commission fell short\nof actually adopting one. In fact, this call for an EU goal has twice been\nadopted by a majority of the European Parliament chamber in the past six months.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Ending homelessness is a complex task. It requires local authorities and national governments to take the lead, together with the involvement of many stakeholders. But the EU can play its part by setting a common political goal for everyone to work towards. Setting an ambitious goal provides clarity and ensures that resources can be released to achieve it. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Among the tools at its disposal, the\nEuropean Union can, for instance, amend the European Semester framework so that\nhomelessness rates are monitored under the European Pillar of Social Rights Action\nPlan target to lift 15 million Europeans out of poverty by 2030. The current\nlack of consistent, Europe-wide data on homelessness is a key challenge that\nshould be overcome.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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A common European goal can also be the basis for the High-Level conference on Homelessness that the Portuguese Presidency is organising in Lisbon on 21 June. In Lisbon, the EU Commission will unveil the Platform on Combatting Homelessness. If underpinned with concrete financial and administrative resources, the platform can make a real difference, beyond a symbolic gesture. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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We can end homelessness, with adequate tools\nand resources. Finland is the only Member State to have already set a goal to\nend homelessness completely, and by 2027. Finland has succeeded in reducing the\nnumber of homeless people every year since 2012, by fully rolling out a \u2018Housing First\u2019 approach<\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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While the causes of homelessness are complex and varied, it is not inevitable or insurmountable. Homelessness is sometimes seen as a fact of life. But turning a blind eye to homelessness is also a political choice. A choice that became apparent at the start of the COVID crisis, when accommodation for homeless people was provided in record time. However, these efforts were often short-lived, and there is a need for a more coherent approach.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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As we head into the European recovery, we must\nensure that the pandemic does not lead to an increase in homelessness as\noccurred in the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2009, but instead we seize\nthis moment to reverse the trajectory. This requires bold political choices and\ninvestment. Porto is the time to deliver.
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[1]<\/em><\/sup><\/a> Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, Bordeaux, Braga, Bremen, Bratislava, Brussels Capital, Budapest, Cluj-Napoca, Dublin, Gent, Helsinki, Kosice, Kuopio, Liege, Leuven, Lyon, Lisbon, Odense, Prague, Ljubljana, Rotterdam, Sevilla, Strasbourg, Tallinn, Taranto, Utrecht, Valencia, Zagreb <\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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