Activities of Alejandro CERCAS related to 2012/2293(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Social housing in the European Union (short presentation)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on social housing in the European Union PDF (306 KB) DOC (210 KB)
Amendments (45)
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 1
Citation 1
– having regard to the Treaty on European Union, in particular Article 3(3) thereof, and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, in particular Articles 9, 14, 148, 151, 153 and 160 thereof,
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 2 a (new)
Citation 2 a (new)
- having regard to Protocol 26 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union on services of general interest,
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 37 a (new)
Citation 37 a (new)
- having regard to its resolution of 15 November 2011 on reform of the EU state aid rules on Services of General Economic Interest1, __________________ 1 Texts adopted, P7_TA(2011)0494.
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas access to housing is a fundamental right that affects access to other fundamental rights and to a life in conditions of human dignity; and whereas guaranteeing access to decent housing is an international obligation incumbent on the Member States, to which the Union must have regard, given that the right of access to housing and to housing assistance is recognised in Article 34 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Articles 30 and 31 of the revised European Social Charter adopted by the Council of Europe and Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human rights, as well as in many Member State constitutions;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
Ba. whereas costs for housing, rent and energy represent the highest share of private budgets and their increase is therefore a major driver for social exclusion and the increasing gap between rich and poor;
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
Ba. whereas the economic crisis has significantly increased the number of those out of work and facing social exclusion, thereby increasing the burden on the welfare services;
Amendment 33 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B b (new)
Recital B b (new)
Bb. whereas affordable accommodation is a suitable tool for achieving social justice and cohesion, and affordable rental housing is a precondition for enhanced labour mobility and increased employment opportunities;
Amendment 35 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B b (new)
Recital B b (new)
Bb. whereas, notwithstanding its significant stabilising effect, public funding for social housing has fallen victim to the recent financial austerity measures currently aggravating the economic crisis;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B c (new)
Recital B c (new)
Bc. whereas the local, regional and national authorities play a major part in organising housing policies in line with the needs of occupants;
Amendment 37 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B d (new)
Recital B d (new)
Bd. whereas, in order to prevent any increase in the number of homeless and any future housing crises, mortgage rules must be designed to protect consumers and spread the risks fairly;
Amendment 39 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas social housing plays a key part in the implementation of the Europe 2020 strategy in that it helps to ensure high levels of employment, inclusion and social cohesion, to promote job mobility and to combat climate change by modernising the housing stock;
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
Ca. whereas the economic and social crisis is having a direct adverse impact on activity in and financial support for the house building and refurbishment sector, with social housing being hit particularly hard, owing to the bursting of housing bubbles, the contraction of credit, late payments and a fall in new public-sector orders; whereas the construction sector can be a driving force in efforts to find a sustainable, inclusive way out of the crisis and to address climate- and energy- related challenges;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 1
Subheading 1
Promoting the role of social housing as a social and macro-economic shock absorberrole of social housing
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. NotUrges that, as a result of the current economic and social crisis, the need for affordable homes is increasingly unmet by the private housing market alone, measures be taken in response to the increasingly unmet need for affordable homes and tho combat rising house prices and energy prices which are aggravating the risks of poverty and social exclusion; it is concerned about the impact of austerity measures such as cuts in housing benefitof major importance to end the cuts in housing benefit which are resulting from financial austerity policies;
Amendment 72 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Urges Member States to reconsider the harsh financial austerity measures which are resulting in drastic cuts in public assistance for the provision of decent housing, reducing the number of homes available for social housing and eroding or even eliminating housing access programmes; points out that these indiscriminate austerity measures are causing particular hardship for certain sectors of society such as young people, abused women, or the elderly and are increasing the risk of social exclusion affecting minority groups;
Amendment 74 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 b (new)
Paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. Points out that social housing should be accessible to wide cross-sections of the population in order to avoid social exclusion and segregation; recalls that social housing is a central pillar of social cohesion and must not be limited to the least favoured alone;
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Points out that, underUrges compliance with Article 14 and Protocol No 26 to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, under which public authorities are free to determine how the social housing sector is organised and funded and what its target group is, with a view to meeting local needs; sees the intervention of public authorities here as a response to the shortcomings of the market, with the aim of ensuring universal access to decent, affordable housing;
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Calls on the Commission to dovetail competition policy with social and employment policy under the EU 2020 Strategy, bearing in mind the specific provisions applicable to Economic Services of General Interest; points out that competition policy should under no circumstances serve to undermine Economic Services of General Interest;
Amendment 86 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Towards a European Social Housing Policy (New Heading)
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Reminds the Member States and the Commission that spending on social housing enables urgent social need to be met and, ass not only to be met, but also to be prevented from emerging, and that they have an important economic and non-profit making role as a strategic social investment, which helps in a sustainable way to provide non- relocatable local jobs, to stabilise the economy by preventing property bubbles, to counter climate change and to combat energy poverty; calls on Member States and the Commission to bring social housing investment within the scheme of the European Semester by including in it an evaluation of targets for combating and preventing property bubbles and households' over- indebtedness, to promote labour mobility, to counter climate change and to combat energy poverty;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Calls, therefore, on Member States and the Commission to establish a European framework for action on social housing, which could take the form of an action plan or of a framework for coordinating social policy, to aim towards coherence between and convergence of different EU policies on the subject (state aid, structural funds, energy, the fight against poverty and social exclusion, health); furthermore, calls on Member States to strengthen or develop specific mechanisms for the financing of social housing construction;
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Asks the Commission to include social indicators such as investments in social housing within the framework of the European Semester and that these indicators should be evaluated on equal footing with macro-economic imbalances;
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Calls on the Commission to modify the criteria contained in the December 2011 Package of State Aids for Economic Services of General Interest restricting social housing assistance concessions to the most vulnerable social categories; Calls on the Commission and Member States to take measures to overcome the difficulties caused by these restrictions;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Calls on the Commission and Member States to take action in response to the social hardship caused to those most affected by the economic crisis and unemployment who are being evicted and deprived of their homes; notes that this is occurring against a backdrop of major public assistance initiatives designed to put the financial system back on a sound footing;
Amendment 116 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 d (new)
Paragraph 4 d (new)
4d. Calls on the Council to convene a meeting of the housing ministers of the Member States at least once a year to discuss the impact of various EU policies on housing policy and ensure that the economic, social and environmental aspects of the housing sector are mainstreamed more efficiently at EU level, with the involvement of stakeholders such as social housing bodies, associations representing occupants and associations seeking to facilitate access to housing;
Amendment 122 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Proposes the establishment of the European Housing Observatory to develop knowledge about the housing situation in the various countries, especially social housing, on the basis of reliable statistical indicators and including the most relevant social factors;
Amendment 129 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Urges the Commission to review regularly the impact of its decisions on social housing in certain Member States, taking account of the accessibility of low- rent housing, State aids for social housing, the market impact on the private housing sector and the consequences for social cohesion as a whole;
Amendment 132 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5b. Calls for EU mortgage provisions to incorporate best practices which are as favourable as possible to consumers; urges the inclusion of procedures for the renegotiation and rescheduling of debt repayments for insolvent individuals and families;
Amendment 146 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Stresses the need to take action in the countries most affected by the economic crisis and unemployment to introduce a programme of assistance for the growing number of persons faced with eviction and foreclosure, offering alternative solutions such as low-rent accommodation for example;
Amendment 153 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Advocates making priority investment in heat efficiency and in the use of renewables in social housing, as well as integrated projects for sustainable urban development, access to housing for marginalised communities, so as to promote social inclusion and measures to combat poverty, the transition from institutional to community-based services and the promotion of social enterprises, eligible for Structural Fund support in the 2014-2020 budgetary period;
Amendment 161 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Encourages Member States and all stakeholders to give social housing and investment a prominent place in national reform programmes and in the shaping of strategic priorities under partnership agreements for the period 2014-2020;
Amendment 226 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – introductory part
Paragraph 16 – introductory part
16. RecommeDemands that Member States draw up integrated policies for guaranteeing universal access to decent affordable housing, with aims including:
Amendment 231 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – indent 1
Paragraph 16 – indent 1
– specific support for good-quality and healthy social housing and "very social" housing,
Amendment 234 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – indent 1 a (new)
Paragraph 16 – indent 1 a (new)
- prevent segregation of specific populations group and encourage diversity,
Amendment 236 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – indent 2
Paragraph 16 – indent 2
– linkage between social housing expansion programmes and policies for access to other essential public services as part of an integrated social policy,
Amendment 238 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – indent 2 a (new)
Paragraph 16 – indent 2 a (new)
- a minimum quota of social housing in areas with dense population, high levels of youth unemployment and high migration rates, in order to increase social cohesion,
Amendment 248 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – indent 3
Paragraph 16 – indent 3
– steps to address the difficulties commonly encountered by highly vulnerable sections of the population, such as migrants and young people, single parents, young and elderly people and victims of domestic violence, the Roma, the disabled, in seeking access to decent housing,
Amendment 251 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – indent 3 a (new)
Paragraph 16 – indent 3 a (new)
- generating specific programmes and proving assistance for victims of property frauds and developing measures to prevent frauds,
Amendment 257 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – indent 4
Paragraph 16 – indent 4
– implementation of effective policies, including social rental law, in close cooperation with organisations of tenants, to stop tenants from being evicted, on the basis that covering rent payments and arrears of rent is a less costly option for the relevant authorities,
Amendment 259 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – indent 4 a (new)
Paragraph 16 – indent 4 a (new)
- avoid discriminatory fiscal measures or subsidies that increase risky debt levels among lower incomes as well as to support affordable housing options like the supply of rental and cooperative housing,
Amendment 265 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 – indent 5 a (new)
Paragraph 16 – indent 5 a (new)
- carrying out the analysis and collecting data in all EU Member States on accessibility to social housing for the most vulnerable groups of people,
Amendment 269 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16a. Calls on the Commission to implement without delay the European Parliament resolution on an EU Homelessness Strategy;
Amendment 289 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 a (new)
Paragraph 17 a (new)
17a. Calls on the Member States and the Commission to support and promote innovatory exchanges of good practices in upholding the right to housing for particularly vulnerable and marginalised groups;
Amendment 299 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 a (new)
Paragraph 19 a (new)
19a. Calls on the Commission and Member States to make sure that the deepening of the internal energy market goes hand in hand with measures to protect vulnerable consumers;
Amendment 315 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 b (new)
Paragraph 20 b (new)
20b. Believes that energy efficiency measures to tackle energy poverty can also help to prevent health problems (respiratory and cardiovascular conditions, allergies, asthma, food or carbon monoxide poisoning, and impact on mental health);