FNARS: Long-term unemployment declared “national issue” – a strong step forward, to turn into real action

EAPN National Networks News

09/07/2014 – The 3rd Social conference on employment took place in Paris with President F. Hollande Paris taking on board FNARS and Collectif Alerte joint proposals, which both organisations welcome. Declaring that long-term unemployment is a major national issue and priority to tackle, the President also called on everyone and particularly social partners to mobilise against what affects today over 2 million people in France. However, the most important is to witness the implementation of concrete and adapted proposals that respond best and as fast as possible to the needs of millions of people experiencing hardship.

EAPN Malta holds In-Work Poverty Conference and launches EAPN publication Working and Poor in Maltese

EAPN National Networks News

12/06/2014 – EAPN Malta (Anti-Poverty Forum Malta) organised a conference on In-Work Poverty aiming to raise awareness on the topic.  Speakers for this conference included the Minister for Education and Work Hon Evarist Bartolo, the Shadow Minister on Poverty Hon Clyde Puli, MEP Dr Therese Comodini Cachia, trade unionists, a Professor in Sociology, and various NGOs.  During this well-attended conference, APF Malta launched the publication ‘Working and Poor’ released by EAPN in November 2013, in Maltese. Various interesting points were raised and discussed, including the need to increase the minimum wage, measures to eliminate precarious work and also the possibility of rising the compulsory school age to 18.

Poverty Alliance urges UK Government to re-think child poverty strategy

EAPN National Networks News

26/06/2014 – Following the publication of the Child Poverty Strategy 2014-17, the Poverty Alliance has called on the UK Government to re-think their approach to child poverty. The current strategy ignores the macro-economic context and the demand side of the labour market, choosing instead to focus on the individual causes of poverty. The strategy also pays no regard to independent child poverty predictions and focuses too heavily on work as a way out of poverty. 

BAPN: BMIN holds conference on adequate and accessible minimum income

EAPN National Networks News

10/06/2014 – BMIN (Belgian Minimum Income Network) organized the conference “Towards the progressive realization of an adequate and accessible minimum income.” The first results of the project were presented as well as BMIN’s recommendations for European and national levels. The following political parties took part in the conference: CDH, Ecolo, FDF, Groen, MR, N-VA, PVDA, Sp.a and PS. All parties confirmed the need for a strong minimum income above the poverty line, and recognized the importance of easy access to minimum income, inter alia, through the automatic granting of rights. Several parties also reaffirmed the target to take 530,000 people out of poverty by 2020  If political parties keep their promise, then the punitive conditions that restrict peoples access to minimum income schemes should be removed.   

The Poverty Alliance (EAPN Scotland): New Statistics Show Increasing In-Work Poverty in Scotland

EAPN National Networks News

01/07/2014 – Today’s figures published by the Scottish Government on Poverty and Inequality show a rise in the number of people in Scotland living in poverty, and highlights the continuing increase in in-work poverty.  In 2012/13, 16 per cent of people in Scotland were living in poverty, compared with 14 per cent the previous year.  In real terms, this means that there are now 820,000 individuals are now living in poverty in Scotland.