One of the major issues facing Europe is housing and “if we really want to tackle the populist threat, we have to find a solution,” European Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, Nicolas Schmit said on Friday, noting that Europe should provide financial assistance to Member States and promote housing policies, as the market will not solve the problem.
Commissioner Schmit was the keynote speaker at an event organised by the office of MEP Costas Mavrides (Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats) at the European Union House in Nicosia, entitled “Towards a citizen-centred social Europe”. The event was addressed by Minister of Labour and Social Insurance, Yiannis Panayiotou.
The Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights pointed out that one of the important issues facing Europe is housing. “I met members of the European Parliament, mayors of EU Member States and others who told me that something should be done about the housing problem in Europe,” he said, noting that housing is not traditionally one of the Union’s competencies.
However, he continued, an important issue in the Dutch elections was housing, pointing out that “if we really want to deal with the populist threat, we have to find a solution to the housing issue.” He noted that Europe should provide financial aid to member states and promote housing policy, as the market will not solve the problem.
Commissioner Schmit said also that “introducing in Cyprus a minimum wage is something important in terms of combating poverty because we are facing in Europe a situation where we have about more than 10% of people working, who are working poor”. He added that this is not normal, noting that if people work, they should have a decent life and should not remain in poverty.
Speaking on the issue of employment, Commissioner Schmit referred to the “SURE” programme, saying that it was a loan made by the European Union with the amount allocated to 19 member states, including Cyprus, which, he said, “allowed to save 30-35 million jobs and protect businesses.”
Commissioner Schmit referred to the main challenges facing the European Union, such as energy security, technological changes, green and digital transition, among others.
He also said that this Commission has put a strong emphasis on young people, pointing out that unemployment is plaguing young people, especially in the southern countries, including Cyprus, Greece and Spain. “We are working a lot on youth employment policy,” he said, adding that young people need to acquire skills, also in the context of the European Year of Skills, noting that “many times young people are rejected from jobs because of a lack of skills.”
In his address, the Minister of Labour said that it is recognised that the European Commission has taken important initiatives that have contributed in practice to the functioning of the European pillar of social rights.
Panayiotou said that “already in the framework of European policies we have established last year the national minimum wage so that wages can be more dignified and satisfactory”, stressing that it has recently been increased to 1,000 euro, and as a result, in the past few days 25,000 low-income employees have received better wages than before.
He noted that in the competitive international economic environment, it is very important for Europe to be at the forefront, to be productive, to be competitive and for this to be sustainable and stable, Europe needs to be social.
In his statement, MEP Mavrides said that among the most serious issues are inflation, the cost of decent living, the housing problem, unemployment and the phenomenon of “working poverty”.
He added that the employment sector is undergoing profound changes due to the digital and green transition, a transition which he said requires radical changes with significant social costs.
Referring to the adoption of a European legislative framework for the minimum wage, Mavrides said that Member States must ensure that the national minimum wage ensures decent living conditions.
He pointed out that the European Union is among the world leaders in the areas of quality of life and well-being. However, he said, there are too many challenges in ensuring the well-being of all citizens in all Member States.
(Cyprus News Agency)
