For a legally binding EU framework for Minimum Income
Common Statement. 116 voices - organizations, MEPs and academia - ask following:
Following the Council Conclusions on Minimum Income, it is time for the European Commission to respond with courage and propose a legally binding EU framework for Minimum Income.
Before the coronavirus crisis, one in five people were at risk of poverty and social exclusion. That is nearly 110 million people without enough money to make ends meet and to live a dignified life. This failure to meet the Europe 2020 poverty target threatens the credibility of Social Europe, with millions more expected to be dragged into poverty as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is no time for business as usual.
One of the best ways to prevent people being dragged into poverty is to build individual and societal resilience – and strong social protection systems are the cornerstone of such resilience. In this context, adequate, accessible and enabling Minimum Income schemes have an essential role to play as an ultimate safety net. The EU Council recognised this on 12 October, issuing Council Conclusions on “Strengthening Minimum Income Protection to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion in the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond”. These Conclusions invite the Commission to “initiate an update of the Union framework to effectively support and complement the policies of Member States on national minimum income protection”.
This invitation is a recognition that EU soft policy mechanisms currently in place have had limited impact, failing to provide incomes at an adequate level to respect the rights and dignity of millions of people. Only two Member States currently pay benefits close to the poverty threshold, while schemes in many countries barely reach 20% of the threshold. This is no time for business as usual.
We add our voices to the Council’s invitation. We know from our work that the lack of adequate, accessible and enabling minimum incomes is a key priority for people experiencing poverty throughout Europe. These Council Conclusions are the long-awaited springboard to move forward on a legally binding Framework Directive on Minimum Income, which would guarantee everyone’s right to an adequate minimum income and enable their full participation in society across the whole life span. We call on the European Commission, and specifically Commissioner Schmit, to respond to the Conclusions by making an ambitious proposal for an EU Framework Directive to guarantee an adequate, accessible, and enabling Minimum Income.
This proposal would be one of the key EU initiatives in the upcoming Action Plan to implement the European Pillar of Social Rights, due to be launched early in 2021. It is a proposal which could reunite the EU Member States around a shared political and moral commitment to end poverty and social exclusion, to a Europe that promotes decent living, decent working conditions and social rights. It is a proposal which could help restore faith in the European project. It is a proposal which is legally and politically feasible, building on existing EU competencies in the social and cohesion policy fields, fully respecting principles of subsidiarity and proportionality and thus protecting national competencies.
The EU must find ways to ensure that the Social Pillar has a real impact on people’s lives. A Framework Directive on Minimum Income would be remembered as the new Commission’s flagship initiative that guarantees a right to an adequate income to the people in the poorest and most vulnerable situations, demonstrating to all that the EU delivers on its promises and prioritises protecting people as well as planet, in its commitment to a social, inclusive and sustainable recovery.
Further Resources
Caritas Europa: Position on Minimum Income
EAPN: Position paper on minimum income (summary), Expert study on a binding EU framework for adequate national minimum income schemes, Op Ed on Minimum Income, 2020 national Poverty Watch reports
ETUC: Resolution on Minimum Income, Discussion paper on Minimum Income, Action programme for welfare and social protection
Eurodiaconia: Adequate Minimum Income – Recommendations For An Active Inclusion Strategy
Social Platform: Position on a Framework Directive for Minimum Income
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Supported by the following European level civil society organisations No |
Organisation |
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1 |
AGE Platform Europe |
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2 |
ATD Forth World |
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3 |
CEDAG |
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4 |
Civil Society Europe |
|
5 |
ECDN European Consumer Debt Network |
|
6 |
EFFAT |
|
7 |
Emmaus Europe |
|
8 |
ENSIE |
|
9 |
ESAN |
|
10 |
European Disability Forum |
|
11 |
European Federation of Older Persons, EURAG |
|
12 |
European federation of public service unions (EPSU) |
|
13 |
European Network Against Racism (ENAR) |
|
14 |
European Roma Grassroots Organisations (ERGO) Network |
|
15 |
European Womens Lobby |
|
16 |
European Youth Forum |
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17 |
Friends of the Earth Europe |
|
18 |
International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW Europe) |
|
19 |
Make Mothers Matter |
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20 |
Mental Health Europe |
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21 |
Observatoire social européen (OSE) |
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22 |
SMES-Europa Mental Health and Social Exclusion |
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23 |
SOLIDAR |
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24 |
The Good Lobby |
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25 |
The Salvation Army, Europe |
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26 |
Transgender Europe |
|
27 |
Volonteurope |
|
28 |
WeMove Europe |
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Supported by the following Members of the European Parliament No |
MEP |
Political Group |
|
1 |
Cindy Franssen |
EPP |
|
2 |
Dennis Radtke |
EPP |
|
3 |
Benoit Biteau |
Greens |
|
4 |
Bricmont Saskia |
Greens |
|
5 |
Caroline Roose |
Greens |
|
6 |
Ciarán Cuffe |
Greens |
|
7 |
Claude Gruffat |
Greens |
|
8 |
Damien Carême |
Greens |
|
9 |
Daniel Freund |
Greens |
|
10 |
David Cormand |
Greens |
|
11 |
Diana Riba i Giner |
Greens |
|
12 |
Ernest Urtasun |
Greens |
|
13 |
Grace O'Sullivan |
Greens |
|
14 |
Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield |
Greens |
|
15 |
Karima Delli |
Greens |
|
16 |
Katrin Langensiepen |
Greens |
|
17 |
Kira Marie Peter-Hansen |
Greens |
|
18 |
Marie Toussaint |
Greens |
|
19 |
Michael Bloss |
Greens |
|
20 |
Mounir Satouri |
Greens |
|
21 |
Romeo Franz |
Greens |
|
22 |
Sara Matthieu |
Greens |
|
23 |
Salima Yenbou |
Greens |
|
24 |
Tatjana Zdanoka |
Greens |
|
25 |
Terry Reintke |
Greens |
|
26 |
Yannick Jadot |
Greens |
|
27 |
Alexis Georgoulis |
GUE |
|
28 |
Clare Daly |
GUE |
|
29 |
José Gusmão |
GUE |
|
30 |
Leïla Chaibi |
GUE |
|
31 |
Marc Botenga |
GUE |
|
32 |
María Eugenia Rodríguez Palop |
GUE |
|
33 |
Marisa Matias |
GUE |
|
34 |
Agnes Jongerius |
S+D |
|
35 |
Alicia Homs Ginel |
S+D |
|
36 |
Brando Benifei |
S+D |
|
37 |
César Luena |
S+D |
|
38 |
Elisabetta Gualmini |
S+D |
|
39 |
Estrella Dura Ferrandis |
S+D |
|
40 |
Gabriele Bischoff |
S+D |
|
41 |
Juozas Olekas |
S+D |
|
42 |
Manuel Pizarro |
S+D |
|
43 |
Marc Angel |
S+D |
|
44 |
Miapetra Kumpula-Natri |
S+D |
|
45 |
Pierfrancesco Majorino |
S+D |
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Supported by the following academics No |
Academic |
Institution |
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1 |
Kristel Driessens |
Bind-Kracht (Master of social work) |
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2 |
Anne Van Lancker |
Consultant European Social Policy |
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3 |
Dubois Jean-Luc |
French Research Institute for Development (retired Emeritus Research Professor) |
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4 |
Lena Schulz |
Institut Goettingen e.V. (Sociological Research) |
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5 |
Mahmood Messkoub |
International Institute of Social Studies (Erasmus University of Rotterdam), The Hague, NL. |
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6 |
Corveleyn Jozef |
KU Leuven |
|
7 |
Idesbald Nicaise |
KU Leuven (HIVA) |
|
8 |
Dr Jeremy Leaman |
Loughborough University (Emeritus) |
|
9 |
Ann-Christine Hartzén |
Lund University |
|
10 |
Mary Murphy |
Maynooth University |
|
11 |
Prof. Dr. Benjamin Benz |
Protestant University of Applied Sciences Rhineland-Westphalia-Lippe, Bochum (Germany) |
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12 |
René Lehwess-Litzmann |
Soziologisches Forschungsinstitut Göttingen (SOFI) |
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13 |
Rüdiger Mautz |
Soziologisches Forschungsinstitut Göttingen (SOFI) |
|
14 |
Dock |
UCLouvain-Fopes |
|
15 |
Françoise BARTIAUX |
UCLouvain, Belgium |
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16 |
Michel Vandenbroeck |
UGent |
|
17 |
Luis Ayala |
UNED |
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18 |
Carlos García-Serrano |
Universidad de Alcalá |
|
19 |
Sergio Tirado Herrero |
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) |
|
20 |
Philippe Bocquier |
Université catholique de Louvain |
|
21 |
Van der Linden Bruno |
Université catholique de Louvain |
|
22 |
Patrick Italiano |
Université de Liège |
|
23 |
Dijon |
Université de Namur |
|
24 |
Xavier May |
Université Libre de Bruxelles |
|
25 |
Bea Cantillon |
University of Antwerp |
|
26 |
Ane Aranguiz |
University of Antwerp |
|
27 |
Herwig Verschueren |
University of Antwerp |
|
28 |
Jill Coene |
University of Antwerp |
|
29 |
Julie Vinck |
University of Antwerp (Herman Deleeck Centre for Social Policy) |
|
30 |
Luc Goossens |
University of Antwerp |
|
31 |
Sigrid Leitner |
University of Applied Sciences Cologne |
|
32 |
Tim Goedemé |
University of Oxford |
|
33 |
Andrea Dischler |
|
|
34 |
Andrea Hense |
|
|
35 |
Elisabeth Buchner |
|
|
36 |
H. Noordegraaf |
|
|
37 |
Hugh Frazer |
|
|
38 |
Knut Tullius |
|
|
39 |
Luca Ratti |
|
|
40 |
Prof. Dr. Jürgen Kädtler |
|
|
41 |
Tess Penne |
|
|
42 |
Ortrud Leßmann |
Also supported by Oliver Ropke, President of the EESC Workers' Group