Housing a ‘social right’, Ioannou tells EU ministers

Housing is a “social right”, without which health, employment and education are seriously affected, Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou said on Tuesday, pointing out that “the ambitious European Affordable Housing Plan, presented by the Commission last December, is a crucial step towards a comprehensive European framework”.

The plan includes concrete measures to increase supply, reduce bureaucracy, encourage investment and reforms, and support the regions and people most affected, Ioannou said.

Speaking during an informal videoconference of the EU housing ministers, Ioannou said there was a need for “a strong European approach”.

He added that “rising prices and rents, limited access to financing and insufficient supply are making housing increasingly unaffordable, affecting not only the most vulnerable, but also middle- and low-income households, young people and families, single parents, people with disabilities and those at risk of poverty or social exclusion.”

Housing Commissioner Dan Jørgensen described the housing crisis as a threat to democracy and stressed the need for immediate action.

Jørgensen presented the key elements of the Commission’s action plan, stressing that the solution will not come from Brussels alone, but at a national and local level as well.

He explained that cities were not being forced to do something they were not willing to do, but they were being given to opportunity to address the problem.

The European Affordable Housing Plan will dominate the agenda of the employment, social policy, health and consumer affairs council (Epsco) on March 9.