social protection

Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion EU Commissioner: "The European Social Situation is Worrying" - Social Investment Package as a European Answer

"In this period household incomes have declined and the risk of poverty or exclusion is constantly growing in the European Union. Some population groups are affected more than others: young adults particularly, unemployed women, and single mothers. They are among those facing the highest risk of persistent poverty," Commissioner Andor said. The study of the European Commission published on 8 January 2013 follows a year which has seen several member states coping with escalating debt and (...)

Council conclusions on Combating Violence Against Women, and the Provision of Support Services for Victims of Domestic Violence

The Council of the European Union adopted its conclusions on Violence Against Women at its 3206th Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer affairs (EPSCO) Council meeting on 6 December 2012. The council calls to consider 2015 as the European Year on Zero Tolerance for Violence against Women. Considering the fact that violence against women affects society as a whole, the Council adopted a few conclusions to tackle the problem. There is NO justification whatsoever for violence (...)

Report on the EP seminar ’From Rhetoric to Action - Tackling Child Poverty and Promoting Children’s Health and Well-being in the EU’

On 4 December 2012, MEPs Jean Lambert (UK, the Greens), Marian Harkin (IE, ALDE), Edit Bauer (SK, EPP) and Sylvana Rapti (EL, S&D) hosted an EU policy makers and stakeholders debate in the European Parliament discussing the need for a comprehensive response to child poverty-health relation at an EU level. The seminar assessed the flaws of Europe’s fight against child poverty and raised awareness about the overlooked linkage between increasing levels of child poverty and austerity (...)

Second Poverty Convention urges EU Member States to invest in social policies for human capital and social cohesion.

The Second Annual Convention of the Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion took place this December 5-7. It stressed the need for robust social policies at national and EU level able to deal with the current economic and social crisis. Ever since the poverty reduction targets were agreed (20 million by 2020), the numbers of poor and socially excluded people in the EU have actually risen. In order to support social inclusion of disadvantaged people, access to adequate services and (...)

[Press Release] Economic policies must address the real impact of crisis on people living in Europe

Brussels, 30 November – The 3rd Annual Growth Survey (AGS), setting out what the European Commission believes must be the EU’s priorities for the coming 12 months in terms of economic, budgetary policies and reforms to boost growth and employment, was released on November 28.(1) The European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) welcomes the survey as it recommends moving away from austerity policies (2), which are difficult for European populations and economies, and places an (...)

Working for Equity in Health : Final Conference

Registration is now open for the concluding PROGRESS Project Conference – Working for Equity in Health to be held in Brussels on Monday, November 26th 2012. EPHa is a partner in the project The concluding PROGRESS Project Conference – Working for Equity in Health - will be held in Brussels on Monday, November 26th 2012. Registration The aim of PROGRESS has been to explore the relationship between work and worklessness as social determinants of health and using an asset based (...)

EPHA Policy Recommendations for measuring health in Sustainability Impact Assessments

Using the growing body of evidence that GDP alone cannot measure the progress of society, EPHA has developed a series of policy recommendations aimed at improving health impact assessment at an EU level. This year the European Commission will conduct an assessment of its roadmap on “GDP and beyond: Measuring progress in a changing world.” In February 2012, EPHA undertook an assessment of progress made at an EU level since 2008, and how progress is measured as part of the Europe (...)

State of the union- political commitment to FTT and an EU budget for social cohesion

In the State of the Union, President of the Commission Jose-Manuel Barroso unveiled plans for a fiscal union with greater monitoring of the financial sector. He also reiterated the Commissions commitment to support an FTT. Finally, as the Multiannual Financial Framework negotiations intensify, Mr Barroso committed to working with Member States and the Parliament to achieve an ambitious budget. Discussing the long-term EU budget, Mr Barroso described the proposal as “realistic, yet (...)

Barroso calls for fairness and equity in structural reforms adopted in EU Member States

For the first time President Barroso addresses the social consequences of the financial crisis in his “State of the Union” address. President Barroso warns of a real social emergency and says structural reforms will only work if it is fair and equitable because inequality is not sustainable. He argued that fairness is an essential to make economic reforms acceptable – “fairness is a question of justice, social justice.” In his speech to Members of (...)

The Impact of the Economic Downturn and Policy Changes on Health Inequalities - the example of London

A report, published by the UCL Institute of Health Equity (the former Marmot Review Team) and commissioned by the London Health Inequalities Network, looks at the The Impact of the Economic Downturn and the Government’s Welfare Reforms on Health Inequalities in London, with a particular focus on employment, income and housing. The report also presents a set of recommendations for local authorities across the EU Member States in their efforts to prevent and mitigate the negative (...)