The European Anti Poverty Network (EAPN) welcomes the European Council’s commitment to improve social cohesion and social inclusion and to give more attention to the fight against poverty and active inclusion. It is now time for the EU to turn these commitments into deeds!
{jathumbnail}It’s official….16% of Europeans remain at risk of poverty and 10% are in jobless households, according to the Joint Report on Social Protection and Social Inclusion, presented by Commissioner Spidla on the 20 February 2007.
EAPN recently released a new report on “Social economy as a tool for inclusion” based on a seminar the Employment and Structural Funds Task Forces of EAPN held on 3 November 2006 in Malta.
Read the letter EAPN sent to EU Prime Ministers and Heads of State ahead of the 2007 European Spring Council..
While welcoming the renewed commitment by EU Ministers of Employment and Social Affairs to make a decisive impact on social exclusion and poverty, EAPN is seriously concerned about the introduction of the confusing concept of “minimum resources” instead of the well understood concept of “minimum income” in the conclusions of the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council which took place on 22 February 2007.
In a letter sent to EU Ministers of Employment and Social Affairs, the European Anti Poverty Network (EAPN) calls on the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council due to take place on 22 February, to give a real meaning to the 2006 Spring Council conclusions that “the Lisbon Strategy is at the service of social cohesion”.
In this paper EAPN provides a brief assessment of how far the new Annual Progress Report and the Draft Joint Employment Report have acted on its concerns. By doing a joint reading of these two reports EAPN wants also to check the consistency between the Employment focused orientations and the general Lisbon political framework they are embedded in.
This document is the report of the roundtable discussion “Structural Funds a contribution to Social Inclusion – focusing on establishing the best systems for NGOs to contribute and participate” which took place in Malta, on 2nd November 2006.
This reports sets out the findings and key messages that have been drawn from an analysis made by the EAPN national and European member’s of the 2006 Implementation reports on the National Reform Programs.
On the eve of the EU’s Employment Committee meeting due to prepare input to the EU Spring Council, the European Anti Poverty Network (EAPN) urges Member States to put poverty and social exclusion back at the heart of the Lisbon Strategy.
