Poverty and social exclusion in southern Europe

In January 2015 the European Commission published ‘Employment and Social Developments in Europe 2014.’ The report emphasises that poverty and social exclusion are undermining southern Europe, already affected by economic recession.

In Greece, the proportion of people under threat of poverty rose from 28.1% in 2008 to 35.7% in 2013. The percentage of Greeks struggling to afford goods of primary necessity rose from 11.2% in 2008 to 20.3% in 2013. Long-term unemployment in Greece rose from 3.7% in 2008 to 18.6% in 2013, while Greece, Spain, France and Italy had the lowest rates of progression from temporary to permanent contracts of employment in 2011-2012. At the same time, Spain and Greece had the highest numbers of young people forced to continue living in, or to return to, their parental homes. Those countries also have the largest numbers of households without material resources.

Is the Commission aware of the social crisis affecting southern Europe, which runs counter to the objective of social inclusion set by the Europe 2020 strategy?

What specific measures does the Commission plan to take against the social exclusion affecting southern Europe?

Source: European Parliament

Answer given by Ms Thyssen on behalf of the Commission

The Commission is fully aware of the economic and social situation in the EU. This has been analysed in various documents, including the Country Reports(1) in the framework of the European Semester.

As stated in the Annual Growth Survey 2015 (AGS) and backed up by the findings of the report on ‘Employment and Social Developments in Europe 2014’(2), the economic and financial crisis has had a significant impact on social conditions.

The AGS also recognises that unemployment rates and the social situation strongly vary across Member States. In particular, the high youth unemployment and the consistently high rate of long-term unemployment are pressing concerns. The Commission has been taking action in this area with the Youth Guarantee and the Youth Employment Initiative(3) as well as with an upcoming initiative aiming at addressing long-term unemployment(4).

The Commission proposes in the AGS an integrated approach combining investment, structural reforms and fiscal responsibility. In the area of structural reforms, labour market reforms, the modernisation of social protection and of education and training systems play a crucial role in coping with the social impact of the crisis.

(1) http://ec.europa.eu/europe2020/making-it-happen/country-specific-recommendations/index_en.htm (2) European Commission (2014), Employment and Social Developments in Europe 2014. (3) http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?langId=en&catId=89&newsId=1829&furtherNews=yes (4) http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?langId=en&catId=89&newsId=2183&furtherNews=yes

Source: European Parliament