The EU’s first ever Anti-Poverty Strategy was announced this week by the European Commission, an important opportunity to make a real and lasting difference to the lives of millions of people across Europe.
At a time when poverty and social exclusion in the EU remains at an alarming level (above 20%), a renewed and ambitious commitment to tackling this systemic and widespread issue was urgently needed to ensure the EU meets its goal of eradicating poverty by 2050.
Overall, there are many positive aspects to the Strategy and Social Platform is glad to see that many of our network’s longstanding demands, outlined our position paper published last year, have been reflected in the Commission’s proposals. The Strategy does aim to address the multidimensional nature of poverty and looks to improve coordination on tackling it across different policy areas such as employment, education, housing and social services. There are also several promising commitments that could contribute to a more coherent and preventative approach to poverty reduction. We were pleased to see our call for national Anti-Poverty Strategies and Coordinators to oversee their implementation echoed by the Commission and importantly that people experiencing poverty will be consulted on the design, implementation and monitoring of initiatives.
However, there are also areas where the Strategy does not go far enough to fully address our calls for binding measures, policy guidance and sufficient funding.
No dedicated budget
The European Commission did not propose any dedicated funding for the Strategy’s implementation. Rather than announcing any further public investment, the Strategy instead urges Member States to achieve these objectives by making ‘maximum use’ of existing funding and puts the emphasis on mobilising the private sector.
This is particularly concerning in the context of the Commission’s current proposal for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), which fails to earmark key EU funds used to combat poverty and social exclusion, including the European Social Fund Plus.
Missing policy approaches
While we were glad to see that the Strategy recognised and addressed the impact of poverty across the life-cycle, we regret that this was accompanied by a strong focus on income and integration into the labour market. Employment is not the only pathway out of poverty, nor is it always the solution. Living in dignity must be a right for all, which means we need policies that not only support different age groups, but that also actively combat discrimination of all kinds. A push for real systemic change such as guaranteeing adequate minimum income and investments in universal services for all was noticeably missing.
Lack of binding measures
Social Platform is disappointed that this Strategy does not put forward concrete-binding targets and timeline for achieving the eradication of poverty in Europe. It instead relies heavily on non-legislative recommendations and best practice guidance, missing the opportunity to enforce new measures and ensure real progress.
The success of this Anti-Poverty Strategy will ultimately depend on political will, adequate funding, meaningful participation, and robust implementation at both EU and national level. As stated by Executive Vice-President, Roxana Minzatu during the Stategy launch on 6 May, “this strategy is about a choice, of whether Europe is willing to act with the ambition and solidarity that the moment and the situation demands.”
Social Platform and our network will continue to work with EU institutions and policy makers to ensure that this Anti-Poverty Strategy brings tangible, positive changes to people who need it the most.
