Resolution on an EU Strategy for the homeless of the European Parliament 14 /9/2011
The European Parliament, having regard to to the Charter of Fundamental Rights, (art. 34)
and the revised European Social Charter, (art. 31),
Whereas
A. homelessness continues to affect people in all EU Member States and is an unacceptable
violation of human dignity;
B. homelessness represents one of the most extreme forms of poverty and deprivation, and
has increased in recent years in several EU Member States;
F. the very nature of homelessness is multifaceted and requires a multifaceted policy response;
G. the Europe 2020 Strategy, and its headline target of lifting at least 20 million people out of the
risk of poverty and social exclusion by 2020, provides new impetus in the fight against all forms
of poverty and social exclusion, including homelessness;
Urges Member States
1. to make progress towards the goal of ending street homelessness by 2015;
2. calls for the development of an ambitious, integrated EU strategy, underpinned by national and
regional strategies with the long-term aim of ending homelessness
5. asks .... to monitor the evolution of national and regional strategies on the problem
- clear targets, particularly relating to the prevention of homelessness;
- a reduction in its duration; a reduction in the most severe forms of homelessness;
- the improvement of the quality of services for homeless people and access to affordable
housing,
- an integrated approach covering all relevant policy fields;
- proper governance, - proper data collection, - a strong housing dimension,
- taking account of changing profiles of the homeless population, and particularly the impact
of migration;
9. calls for a strong research agenda in order to develop knowledge and understanding in the
framework of an EU homelessness strategy, and ongoing mutual learning and transnational
exchange on key issues in the fight against homelessness;
11. calls for an EU homelessness strategy to focus on the promotion of quality services for homeless
people and urges the Commission to develop a voluntary quality framework as stipulated in the
Communication on the European Poverty Platform;.
15. urges the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) to work more on the implications of
extreme poverty and social exclusion in terms of access to and enjoyment of fundamental
rights, bearing in mind that the fulfilment of the right to housing is critical for the
enjoyment of a full range of other rights, including political and social rights.
What has changed in 20 years,
since the first European conference (1992) untill today about
-
RIGHTS & Needs
?
perception of rights and solidarity?
assistance and inclusion?
-
SOCIAL protection and
HEALTH system
: health, mental health, home, work, education?
..
-
AWARENESS of politicians, NGOs, public institutions and the awareness of
civil
society
-
WORKERS
on frontline: the professional staff of volunteer - volunteer
training;
-
TRAINING & research
at local, national and European level: the involvement of universities,
as
the
objectives.
What is the situation, 20 years later ?
During these twenty years, many national and European programs
of fight against poverty were conducted, as well as reforms for
deinstitutionalization, promoting mental health services .
However, the financial and economic crisis, consequence of
European society crisis, reducing the budget for welfare
services, could seriously hinder these developments.
What are the urgent priorities:
concerning :
-
specific objective:
a) homeless and mentally ill;
b) irregular migrants and the Roma;
c) older people living alone;
-
services and access
: a) reception and accommodation ',
b) support and assistance;
c) employment and inclusion
-
workers :
a) training,
b) inter / super vision,
c)
Lobbying and Advocacy
-
network &
synergies:
a) Network: transnational and multidisciplinary;
b) monitoring / research,
c) lobbying
