Cyprus ranked second in the percentage of people unable to keep their home warm enough, according to the Council of Europe’s European Committee of Social Rights review on Social Rights and Cost of Living Crisis, which cites Eurostat data for 2022 and was published on 19 March, which focused on the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on social rights across Europe.
Cyprus was also among countries with the highest proportion of households with arrears, while special reference is made it the country’s housing subsidy and social housing policies.
According to the Committee, the review provides a detailed overview of the challenges faced by states in safeguarding the rights enshrined in the European Social Charter and sets out recommendations to governments on how to ensure that those rights are guaranteed in situations where the cost of essentials rises much faster than average household incomes.
As stated, as per Eurostat data, over 41 million people in the EU (9.3% of the population) were unable to keep their home adequately warm in 2022, compared to 6.9% in 2021, with the highest percentages of people unable to keep their home adequately warm being registered in Bulgaria (22.5%), Cyprus (19.2%), Greece (18.7%), Lithuania and Portugal (both 17.5%), Spain (17.1%) and Romania (15.2%). Conversely, Finland (1.4%), Luxembourg (2.1%), Slovenia (2.6%), Austria (2.7%), Czechia (2.9%), Sweden (3.3%) and Estonia (3.4%) reported the lowest percentages.
As regards mortgage, it is noted that rent or utility bills arrears are another indicator that housing costs were already too high before the crisis, with the proportion of people living in households with mortgage, rent or utility bills arrears in the EU falling from 12.4% in 2010 to 8.2% in 2019, despite a steady rise in house prices and rents during the same period.
It is added that the proportion of households with arrears started growing again in 2019, reaching 9.3% in 2023, while in the same year, the highest figures were observed in Greece (47.3%), Bulgaria (18.8%), Romania (14.4%) and Cyprus (14.3%), and the lowest in the Netherlands (2.6%), Czechia (2.9%), Belgium (4.6%) and Italy (5%).
Furthermore, the review identifies measures aimed at better targeting the most vulnerable households, such as the support provided by Austria to low-income households in the form of a benefit to cover housing costs (rental payments or repayment of a mortgage or refurbishment loan).
In a similar fashion, Latvia reviewed the minimum income thresholds used for calculating the housing benefit with a view to providing higher material support to households with persons of retirement age and persons with disabilities, while Cyprus introduced a means-tested housing subsidy for young couples or young people.
It is added that some States provided information about existing or novel initiatives to increase the supply of social housing by building from scratch or by refurbishing or converting existing housing units, citing as an example Cyprus that described a range of initiatives in its report, including the “Renovate – Rent” project, aiming to integrate unoccupied properties into the rental market; the extension of existing urban planning incentives; a new special housing incentive concerning the design, construction and rental of a number of residential units (Built to Rent scheme); social housing through the construction of residential units on appropriate plots of land within the refugee settlements, and the reinstatement of “Plan of Plots for Low-Income Families”.
In terms of recommendations, the Committee urges States to design and implement targeted measures for the groups most affected by the crisis, taking their specific needs into account.
It also urges States to take all necessary steps to ensure that social security benefits and assistance remain adequate by adjusting them to keep up with inflation and support the most affected groups, while also ensuring fair remuneration and that minimum wages are set at no less than 60% of the net national average wage.
In terms of rising housing costs, as well as energy and food prices, Governments are urged to increase initiatives to enhance the supply of social housing and strengthen protections against evictions, while closely monitoring levels of energy poverty, providing targeted support to those most affected, and implementing long-term policies to ensure stable, consistent, and safe access to adequate energy.
Finally, the Committee urges Governments to carry out meaningful consultation with persons belonging to the groups most affected by the crisis and ensure their participation of in the design, implementation, and evaluation of measures taken in response to the crisis.
Also read: Limassol couple hospitalised after using outdoor heater indoors
Source: CNA
