80 million citizens currently live below the poverty line, according to EU statistics. This figure is expected to increase because of the ongoing economic crisis, which is pushing unemployment to new highs.
The situation is worsening at a time when the EU has proclaimed 2010 as the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion.
To help fight poverty, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), an EU consultative body, is holding an international conference in Florence, Italy, to gather experts and decision-makers in the field of education and social exclusion.
Some of the ideas floated in Florence include teaching Muslim immigrants European languages in mosques to favour social integration, supporting the education of women and young people, backing life-long training and supporting businesses that act in favour of social integration.
Education and training has often been touted at EU level for its potential to reduce poverty and meet the bloc's 2020 targets on social exclusion.
New powers for economic and social actors
The Florence initiative comes after civil society was granted new powers under the Lisbon Treaty. A new citizen's initiative triggered by a million signatures can lead the European Commission to propose new legislation.
For the first time, the European Economic and Social Committee is actively proposing such regulatory intervention as part of its role in representing civil society. So far, it has limited itself to presenting opinions on issues where the European institutions are obliged to demand its advice as part of the EU law-making process.
The Florence conference could be the "first step towards new European legislation based on the key instrument of education," said EESC President Mario Sepi.
Indeed, the conference will feed into a text which is expected to urge the European Commission to publish a Green Paper on the subject of education to combat social exclusion.
A Green Paper is a consultative document aimed at fostering public debate on a specific issue, with a view to legislating at a later stage. On social issues, the Commission plays a primarily coordinating role among national authorities, but the EU has no real competence in the field.
Commission welcomes initiative
"We welcome such a suggestion as something to explore further," said a European Commission spokesperson in charge of education and social affairs.
European Commission President José Manuel Barroso is scheduled to participate in the Florence conference on Saturday (22 May), when he is expected to back the initiative.
Socialists & Democrats MEP Gianni Pittella (PSE), a vice-president of the European Parliament, has already supported the initiative and called for a European programme of public investment in education, training and research. He also proposed "minimum citizenship income for youth".
EU targets and other initiatives
In its draft 'Europe 2020' strategy, the European Commission announced plans to reduce the number of Europeans living below the poverty line by 25%, lifting 20 million out of poverty from the current 80 million.
On education, the EU executive's objective is to reduce the share of early school leavers from the current 15% to below 10%, making sure that at least 40% of youngsters have a degree or diploma (see EurActiv LinksDossier).
Agreement on the poverty target is far from certain, however, since many countries are contesting indicators used to define poverty (EurActiv 01/03/10). The same goes for education, where Germany fears the plans could impinge on national sovereignty (EurActiv 19/03/10).
A meeting of EU social affairs ministers, planned for 7 June, is expected to clarify the situation. "Commissioner László Andor will not give up a numeric target on poverty," said his spokesperson, Cristina Arigho.
Andor, who is responsible for social affairs, is also planning to publish this autumn a communication proposing measures to boost youth employment. Young people enjoy much lower employment rates than their parents did, and are therefore more likely to fall into poverty when they cannot rely on the support of their families.
