Preface

• Author: Isabel Baptista - Eric Marlier
• Pages: 9-11

National strategies to fight home lessness and housing exclusion Synthesis Report

9

PREFACE

European policy context

Over almost two decades, several initiatives at the European Union (EU) level have helped to include

homelessness as an important topic on the EU agenda. In 2010, the adoption of the Europe 2020

Strategy provided a unique opportunity to boost EU progress on homelessness. For the first time,

the EU set a headline social inclusion target – to lift at least 20 million people out of the risk of

poverty and social exclusion – and Member States committed themselves to adopting national

social inclusion targets as part of this strategy.

Since then, there has been increased awareness of the need for more strategic approaches and

integrated strategies for fighting homelessness and housing exclusion (HHE). In 2010, the Joint

Report on Social Protection and Social Inclusion called on Member States to develop comprehensive

homelessness strategies, providing guidance (Council of Ministers 2010).

The EU Network of Independent Experts on Social Inclusion recognised a growing trend among

Member States “moving in the direction of developing strategies or at least more comprehensive

and integrated approaches” (Frazer and Marlier 2009, p. 4), in a context where a number of

countries had already developed overall national strategies.

The European Consensus Conference on Homelessness held in Brussels in December 2010 resulted

in a set of policy recommendations aimed at providing a sound basis for strengthened “ambition

and action” in the area of homelessness. Its conclusions clearly highlighted the need for an

integrated strategic approach to homelessness, at both EU and national levels.

The European Parliament’s Resolutions adopted in September 2011 and January 2014 urged the

European Commission to develop an EU homelessness strategy that could support Member States

in taking up the fight against homelessness.

As part of the EU Social Investment Package (SIP) adopted in 2013, the Commission called on

Member States to develop integrated national strategies on homelessness, and at the same time

committed itself to monitoring progress within the European Semester exercise. The SIP included

a Staff Working Document on Confronting Homelessness in the EU, which underlines the need to

tackle homelessness through comprehensive strategies based on prevention, housing-led

approaches and a review of the regulations and practices on eviction.

The European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR) recognises the right of the homeless to housing and

assistance. More specifically, Principle 19 on “Housing and assistance for the homeless” states that:

• access to social housing or housing assistance of good quality shall be provided to those

in need;

• vulnerable people have the right to appropriate assistance and protection against forced

eviction; and

• adequate shelter and services shall be provided to the homeless in order to promote their

social inclusion.

In recent cycles, the European Semester has increasingly covered the issue of HHE. This is important

in view of the strategic link between the European Semester and the EPSR: the latter (its principles

and objectives) is expected to serve as a point of reference for implementation of the former.

The 2019 Joint Employment Report (JER) provides a detailed analysis of the HHE situation in the

EU, going beyond the indicators included in the social scoreboard used for monitoring

implementation of the EPSR. It highlights important challenges present in several Member States

in relation to HHE: the access to housing of good quality, the significant share of household