Photographer at the European Economic and Social Committee

Universal access to decent, sustainable and affordable housing

The key points of the meeting on universal access to decent, sustainable and affordable housing were defined as follows.

• The health, economic and social crisis of COVID-19 has exposed the seriousness of the affordable housing crisis that member states have been facing for years. Although housing policy remains the responsibility of the Member States, the shortage of decent and affordable housing in the EU calls for a European Housing Action Plan that covers a coherent and readable set of measures for European citizens, helping Member States, regions and cities to give a lasting boost to the supply of social and affordable housing.

• First and foremost, the EU must ensure that it enshrines a genuine universal right to housing, notably by issuing sector-specific regulations, in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, establishing the principles and setting the conditions for providing, commissioning and financing affordable and decent housing, in line with Article 14 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU.

• In this context, the EESC welcomes the Commission's initiative to establish a link between the European Social Charter and the European Semester, which, in the field of housing policy, should result in better monitoring of social housing reform, housing accessibility and affordability, and the effectiveness of housing allowances.

• The creation of a "European fund for investment in affordable, decent and adequate housing" aimed at creating and maintaining low-cost housing would enable the EU to make its actions and policies more legible and coherent for European citizens, particularly in the context of the future "building" plan of the Green Pact and the future action plan of the European Social Rights Base.

• The European Commission should revise as soon as possible the decision on services of general economic interest concerning the target group for social housing, and clarify that housing policy cannot be limited to the sole objective of helping people at risk of poverty, but must guarantee decent, affordable and sustainable housing for all citizens. In this context, the Commission should propose a common definition of the notion of additional housing costs, a harmonized methodology for assessing excessive housing costs, normative regulations against the speculative retention of empty dwellings and building plots, and a framework for practices involving the conversion of affordable housing into short-term tourist rental accommodation.

• Finally, the EESC calls on the Commission to organize, on an annual basis, a European affordable housing summit, bringing together all stakeholders, to review the implementation and monitoring of this European action plan for affordable housing, with the help of an annual report on the state of housing in the EU.

Our professional photographer, Daïna Le Lardic, captured the event perfectly: universal access to decent, sustainable and affordable housing. She captured the highlights of the various workshops and panel discussions at the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC).

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Discover Daïna LE LARDIC's photo gallery on the European Economic and Social Committee website.

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Source: website of the European Economic and Social Committee