Having a place to call home has become unaffordable for far too many people in the European Union. While average rents are almost a quarter higher than in 2010, the cost of buying a home has risen by 50%. This represents a harsh reality for over 10.6% of Europeans living in cities and 7% in rural areas. The data is even more striking when it comes to young people, with about 47% of young Europeans (18-34) still living with their parents.
Housing is a human right that must be guaranteed to all.
The Party of European Socialists Group in the European Committee of the Regions has been the first in calling for a European Deal for Housing. Today the PES family has succeeded in placing this issue at the top of the European Commission’s agenda and in establishing a special committee in the European Parliament to propose solutions.
But the hard work must start now. As the European Commission prepares to present the European Affordable Housing Plan, progressive local and regional leaders are putting forward eleven concrete steps to fix the housing crisis in the European Union – based on the work led by the PES Group member and Mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, as rapporteur in the European Committee of the Regions.
The European Affordable Housing Plan is more than a policy initiative, it is a moral imperative to safeguard the social fabric of communities and ensure no one is left behind. The European Union must support local and regional authorities to make the right to affordable and decent housing a reality.
