The EU Anti-Poverty Strategy, published by the European Commission on 6 May 2026 alongside a Recommendation proposal on housing exclusion, addresses housing and homelessness as key dimensions of poverty in Europe. The scale of the challenge is stark: since 2013, house prices have risen by more than 60% across the EU, while approximately one million people are affected by homelessness.
Social Platform calls for housing to be recognised as a fundamental right, for strong social conditionalities on housing investments, for the Housing First model to be embedded with dedicated EU funding, and for state aid rules to be revised to enable public and community-led housing providers to meet the needs of low-income groups.
The EU Anti-Poverty Strategy references the European Affordable Housing Plan and the European Platform on Combatting Homelessness (EPOCH) as complementary initiatives. The three need to work in tandem to ensure social and affordable housing support reaches those most in need and prevents homelessness.
Find out more about this issue and discover the expertise of our network:
Caritas Europa warmly welcomes the first ever EU anti-poverty strategy presented by the European Commission, marking an important step in placing the fight against poverty higher on the EU’s political agenda.
EAPN welcomes the European Commission’s commitment to eradicating poverty through the first-ever EU Anti-Poverty Strategy.
EU anti-poverty strategy analysis
Explore Social Platform’s analysis and reaction to the anti-poverty strategy as a whole on our main overview page.
