Speech by Executive Vice-President Mînzatu at the European Parliament Plenary on INI Report on the Anti-Poverty Strategy

Honourable Members,
as you know, this year we will adopt the European Unions first ever Anti-Poverty Strategy.
This should send a clear signal that in 2026, we cannot accept that still around 93 million people, 20% of the EU population are at risk of poverty and social exclusion. And 1 million people experience the most severe form of poverty: homelessness.
We want to send a strong message: Nobody should feel forgotten. On the contrary, we want to stand by and support people facing hardship at this crucial time, when the cost of living is a huge concern and many cannot afford basic goods and services.
An EU Strategy to tackle poverty can only be a collective endeavour, starting by its design. We have consulted very broadly (Member States, civil society, businesses, social partners and people experiencing poverty, including children), and we have collected a broad array of evidence and recommendations on the way forward.
The Parliaments INI Report is an extremely valuable contribution–.
And I am very glad to see that our findings converge to those of this House. Let me highlight five elements, which in my opinion are crucial.
First, taking a fundamental rights approach also means recognising that poverty is multidimensional. Addressing poverty is not only about income, but also about access to housing, employment, education, health-, child- and long-term care, energy, transport and other services or food.
There are also other barriers to moving out of poverty, like health issues, disability or stigma. Therefore, it is essential to take a person-centred approach, and making sure that different policies help, and do not contribute to worsening poverty and its drivers.
Second, we need to address poverty throughout the life cycle (children, youth, working age population and old age) and focus on the specific needs at the different stages of life. One area of focus will be the strengthening of the European Child Guarantee. Taking such life cycle approach is also a key element to intergenerational fairness. The Strategy will also look into the territorial angle and the gender dimension of poverty.
Third, our ambition is to combine a strong supportive and a preventive approach, meaning supporting both those in poverty today and at the same time preventing others from falling into poverty tomorrow, in particular in the context of rising costs-of-living and also by focusing and investing on children and on youth.
Fourth, we will not address poverty with social policy alone. If we want to address its root causes, we must take a systemic approach and address poverty in all relevant policy areas ranging from energy, transport and agriculture to digital, financial or justice policies.
Finally, we all need to work together: Public and private actors, civil society and social partners at EU, national, regional and local levels. This also means we need to hear the voices to those experiencing poverty first-hand and recognise the value of their expertise to improve policies.
Thank you, and I look forward to the discussion.