Key Issues
Up one levelIn this section additional information and material such as papers and useful links to organisations, documents, facts and figures etc. on key issues in in the field of social inclusion policies can be found.
Integration of ethnic minorities and immigrants
The EU officially recognizes immigrants and ethnic minorities as particularly vulnerable to the risks of social exclusion. Therefore they receive special attention in the designing of social inclusion programmes and were the subject of a number of Peer Reviews.
Quality and accessibility of social services
Social services in general, and particularly their quality and accessibility for vulnerable people play a major role in counteracting social exclusion and helping people at risk to find ways for a better life. Accessibility and quality of these services were therefore always among the major issues that were discussed during the Peer Reviews.
Homelessness and housing exclusion
Homelessness and housing deprivation is perhaps the most extreme example of poverty and social exclusion in society today, both as a symptom and as a cause. The consequences of homelessness and housing exclusion can be severe for health, access to employment, access to education, social participation, etc. In the European Union and its Member States housing deprivation is now recognised as a subject of specific interest and several Member States are developing more integrated approaches to tackling homelessness. Thus homelessness and housing exclusion was also a key issue in the Peer Reviews.
Children and Families
In many EU Member States families – and with them children – are at the highest risk of living in poverty. Fighting child poverty and breaking its intergenerational transmission remain among the most serious challenges facing the European Union. In the conclusions of the 2005 and 2006 Spring Summits the Heads of State and Government particularly noted that in pursuing social inclusion policy the Union and Member States should focus on child poverty and take necessary measures for its rapid and significant reduction, giving all children equal opportunities, regardless of their social background. The situation of children and families was an important issue in various Peer Reviews.
Promoting active inclusion
The concept of "active inclusion" is based on a comprehensive policy mix combining an adequate level of income support with a link to the labour market and better access to services in order to help to remove hurdles encountered by some individuals and their families in entering mainstream society. The main challenge is to ensure that social protection policies effectively contribute to mobilising people who are capable of working while achieving the wider objective of providing a decent living standard to those who are and will remain outside the labour market and thus are at high risk of falling into poverty and social exclusion. The Peer Reviews in social inclusion represent an effective tool to share good practice and enhance policies in the active inclusion field.
Over-indebtedness and financial exclusion
Access to finance is a basic service that is essential for citizens to be economically and socially integrated in today's society and a prerequisite for employment, economic growth, poverty reduction and social inclusion. Over-indebtedness can be caused by, and contributes to, social exclusion of individuals and families, harming their participation in economic and social life. Thus the issue of over-indebtedness and financial exclusion became also the subject of various Peer Reviews.
Ageing and providing adequate and sustainable pensions
Higher life expectancy and the growing proportion of older citizens in relation to younger people are closely interlinked with challenges in social protection and social inclusion. The effects of a demographic development characterised by longevity and decreasing fertility rates, call for a better balance between pension contributions and benefits. Thus major issues involve the sustainability of pensions and the provision of minimum resources as well as the above-average at-poverty-risk of the elderly, in particular women. Providing incentives and opportunities to stay in work longer together with tailor-made health and long-term care allow for self-determined ageing. Ageing and the reform of pension systems was a key issue in several Peer Reviews.
Health and long-term care
Social protection systems must ensure equal access for all to adequate health and long-term care and that the need for care does not cause poverty to the care recipients or their relatives. In 2002 the Barcelona European Council recognised three guiding principles for the reform of health care systems: accessibility for all; high quality care and long-term financial sustainability. Long-term sustainability and quality require the promotion of healthy and active life styles and good human resources for the care sector. Confronted with rising long-term care needs arising from demographic change, care systems have to be reformed, properly resourced and put on a sound financial footing. The Peer Reviews in Social Protection and Social Inclusion can play an important role for stimulating reform discussions and to exchange good practice in the field of health and long-term care.
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