Poverty Watch: The Reality of Poverty and Social Exclusion in the EU
Last Updated: 28 February 2019
by Vera NYGARD
The EU Affairs Office took part of the Meeting of the Intergroup Fighting Against Poverty on January 29th. The meeting was held to facilitate an exchange on the European Anti-Poverty Network’s 2018 Poverty Watch Reports. (link) This meeting focused on the reports from Finland, Spain, Italy and Lithuania. Moderator was Jean Lambert, MEP, Poverty Intergroup co-President.
Considerations for the Salvation Army:
- The role of NGO’s is essential to explain why it is important to have a child guarantee and reduce poverty throughout Europe.
- TSA needs to lend its voice at municipal and national level in regards to the unacceptable costs of austerity cut backs particularly on the growing number of children living in poverty and the numbers of people in in work poverty.
- Remind same authorities of the need for poverty to be tackled through cohesive measures that link , social housing, social protection , decent income for those in or out of work. Education and health care.
- Lend our voice also to the unacceptable conditions of social housing and the lack of social housing.
Silvia Costa, MEP, Poverty Intergroup co-President, gave the introduction speech, in which she stressed that multi-dimensional poverty is still a relevant problem for a lot of European families. Child poverty is a growing issue, so much so that one out of four children is affected by it. “Ending child poverty is the first step towards ending inequality”, Costa remarked.
Sian Jones, EAPN Policy Coordinator, presented the main findings from the Poverty Watch Reports. She emphasized that the reports are not academic in nature, they are rather very practical reports on the issues that people living in poverty face. Currently, 13 million people in the EU are in danger of poverty. This is a decrease of 5 million since 2008, but still way below target, Jones said. Lack of adequate housing is a rising issue, and the effects of poverty point to major injustice. As an example of this, Jones mentioned that in Ireland people in poverty are 39% more likely to die of cancer. The reasons for poverty are mainly structural – income and wealth are unevenly distributed. The EU has a tendency to treat finding jobs as sure ways to get people out of poverty. However, Jones remarked that this is not a comprehensive solution, as oftentimes jobs are not permanent or the contract terms are poor, which can lead to in-work poverty. Sian Jones stressed that in the end this is about a political choice. The resources are available, but there is a lack of will to distribute them. There needs to be more targeted approaches towards housing, health, etc, as well as guaranteed basic services for all. Everyone should have the right to a decent income, whether they are working or not.
Jiri Sironen from EAPN Finland started off the country specific presentations. He stated that Finland is often referred to as the “model-country”, due to its comparatively low poverty rates. However, facts show that the existing poverty seems to be deepening. Low-income households have been affected by cuts in basic income benefits, and the financial position of groups relying on basic income benefits has been exacerbated by tax increases on benefits. The groups most affected by these cuts and increases are the unemployed, families with children, and students, mentioned Sironen.
Graciela Malgesini from EAPN Spain shared information on the situation in her country. Poverty in Spain is to a large extent a female problem, said Malgesini. Especially single mothers are very likely to be affected by it, as 1 out of 2 are living in poverty. As many as 600.000 households in Spain are without any income at all, and Malgesini stressed that we need to see practical results from the Social Pillars.
Rimgaile Matulionyte represented EAPN Lithuania. Poverty and exclusion rates in Lithuania are among the highest in the EU and the level of risk of poverty was the highest last year since joining the EU. Matulionyte informed us that it is one of the fastest growing economies in Europe, but income equality is still one of the largest in the EU. There are a lot of bureaucratic barriers to accessing social support in Lithuania, which is a challenge in a country where the minimum income in 65.5 euros.
The last country specific presentation was given by Letizia Cesarini-Sforza from EAPN Italy. Poverty in Italy is on the rise and more and more people are living in extreme poverty. There are major regional differences between the South and the North. In fact, the risk of poverty is three times higher in the Southern parts of Italy. Homelessness is on the rise in the whole country and people with former refugee status are living in difficult situations, as they are no longer able to receive benefits or stay in shelters.
In the effort to bring out the reality of people living in poverty, two EAPN members who have firsthand experience of it shared their experiences. José Maria De Leon Civera from Spain and Eeva-Maria Grekula from Finland spoke about a Europe that is not always looking after its most vulnerable. They both called for more efforts from decision makers to ensure that the reality and the effects of poverty are not forgotten. Ruth Paserman, Deputy Head of Cabinet of Marianne Thyssen, DG EMPL, confirmed that greater efforts are required to guarantee social protection for all. The Social Pillars have a great potential to reduce some of the existing inequalities, Paserman remarked.
In the closing remarks, Veronica Lope-Fontagné, Poverty Intergroup co-President, emphasized the importance of listening to people’s stories and refer to reality. Every European country needs to work on improving the situation of their poor. It’s especially important to guarantee equal opportunities for children. Lope-Fontagné referred to the European Child Guarantee, and encouraged civil society actors to speak up about the importance of fighting against child poverty.
Tags: Europe