Developing a new EU anti-poverty strategy

3.2.2026 A10-0260/1

Amendment 1

Margarita de la Pisa Carrión, Pál Szekeres, Nikola Bartůšek, Marie Dauchy, Mélanie Disdier, Séverine Werbrouck

on behalf of the PfE Group

Report A10-0260/2025

João Oliveira

Developing a new EU anti-poverty strategy

(2025/2095(INI))

Motion for a resolution (Rule 188(3) of the Rules of Procedure) replacing non-legislative motion for a resolution A10-0260/2025

European Parliament resolution on developing a new EU anti-poverty strategy

The European Parliament,

– having regard to the Budapest declaration on the new European competitiveness deal, adopted by the European Council on 8 November 2024,

– having regard to Article 151 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU),

– having regard to Rule 55 of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas an EU anti-poverty strategy requires policies that promote the prosperity and wealth of nations, families, undertakings and workers;

B. whereas poverty is defined as a circumstantial lack of means that preclude people from having a standard of living considered acceptable in the country in which they live and with which they can fulfil their own development and that of all family members; whereas tangible indicators should be used to ascertain whether the basic needs of individuals and their families are covered; whereas poverty can be accentuated by other factors, such as living in deprived rural or urban areas, inadequate public service infrastructures or lack of access to medical services;

C. whereas social policy falls primarily within the competence of the Member States, and the EU’s role in this field is limited to supporting and complementing national policies, in accordance with Article 153(1) TFEU;

1. Recalls that any initiative undertaken by the Commission to present an anti-poverty strategy (‘the strategy’) should respect the respective activities of the Member States in social policy;

2. Considers that the strategy should include the following guidelines:

(a) recognising that the fight against poverty must be based primarily on the idea of working for a living, by fostering employment, rewarding work and supporting economic activity that enables families, enterprises and workers to achieve lasting prosperity;

(b) respecting the full sovereignty of Member States in defining, implementing and evaluating social policy that prevents and tackles situations of poverty;

(c) putting the family at the centre of social and governmental policies as exemplified by the Governments of Hungary and Italy in recent years, by implementing coherent and long-term family policies combining fiscal incentives, social benefits, housing support and work-family balance measures, with the objective of addressing demographic challenges, supporting parental choice, reinforcing intergenerational solidarity and strengthening social stability;

(d) setting the objective of reducing the overall tax burden in the Member States in order to support economic activity and employment;

(e) supporting entrepreneurship, particularly that forming the backbone of the economy, that is, small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as the self-employed;

(f) promoting decent and safe working conditions, both in the private and the public sectors;

(g) reducing administrative burden where there is excessive bureaucracy and simplifying EU and national regulations;

(h) providing a clear and transparent approach to accessing EU funds to ensure that they reach the intended end beneficiaries;

(i) protecting the right of Member State nationals to access employment and earn their living, which is put at risk by calls to recruit non-EU nationals as a response to labour market needs;

3. Calls on the Commission to abandon its current green energy strategy, which is driving families, businesses and workers into poverty;

4. Recommends that the Member States implement policies promoting the primary sector;

5. Recommends that the Commission promote industry rooted in the Member States, by supporting local and regional companies and workers, rather than large multinational actors detached from local economies; emphasises the importance of promoting local and regional production that generates income and employment within national territories, by supporting locally established companies and workers, rather than relying on the importation of labour from non-EU countries; underlines that sustainable economic development must be rooted in local value creation;

6. Recommends that the Member States develop comprehensive family policies aimed at boosting birth rates, by supporting families through explicit fiscal incentives for childbearing, improved access to childcare services enabling mothers to participate in the labour market, and targeted support for single-parent families, whose specific social and economic vulnerabilities must be duly recognised;

7. Underlines the importance of inclusive labour market policies, including incentives for the employment of persons with disabilities;

8. Recommends that the Member States implement favourable tax policies for young families and young entrepreneurs, recognising their central role in economic renewal, job creation and demographic vitality, while reducing financial barriers to family formation and business creation;

9. Recommends that the Member States support policies that guarantee accessible and high-quality public services, particularly in areas such as education, healthcare, access to water and sanitation;

10. Recommends that the Member States develop sound social housing policies; calls for the Commission and Parliament to respect the Member States’ exclusive competence on housing; recommends that targeted policies to facilitate access to housing for young people and young families be implemented, including preferential conditions for first-time buyers and priority access to social housing for national citizens, in order to promote family stability, social cohesion and long-term demographic sustainability;

11. Calls for strengthened measures to combat fraud against social benefit systems, to preserve their sustainability and fairness, and to ensure that solidarity mechanisms effectively support those most in need;

12. Recommends that the Member States invest in high-quality public and private education as the most effective medium-term strategy for ensuring prosperity, while developing and implementing targeted measures to prevent and address students leaving school before completing their studies;

13. Recommends that the Member States place particular emphasis on children living in rural and underserved areas, and invest in tailored educational support programmes – including transport, digital access, mentorship and family engagement initiatives – to ensure that children from these areas can attend and remain in school; recommends, furthermore, promoting lifelong learning opportunities and vocational training to foster equal opportunities for children and young people in rural and underserved communities;

14. Calls on the Commission to apply a ‘one in, one out’ approach to EU funding, prioritising research and development projects over initiatives driven primarily by ideological objectives;

15. Recommends that the Member States take childrearing responsibilities into account within pension schemes, particularly in cases where women are unable to work or make pension contributions during such periods;

16. Recommends that the Member States, within their national competences, develop targeted policies to prevent and address homelessness, including through access to decent housing, tailored social and employment support, and coordination with healthcare and social services, with the objective of reintegrating homeless persons into society and the labour market where possible;

17. Recommends that the Commission and the Member States develop and implement targeted measures to invest in tailored transport initiatives aimed at strengthening territorial cohesion, particularly in rural areas and in the outskirts of cities;

18. Stresses the necessity of energy policies that ensure all individuals and families can heat their homes adequately and at an affordable cost, recognising access to energy as a prerequisite for a decent standard of living and social inclusion;

19. Calls on the Commission to ensure that artificial intelligence and digital policies remain human-centred, placing families, workers and businesses at the core of their design and implementation;

20. Stresses the need for accompanying policies in the digital and technological transitions, focusing on the training and upskilling of workers, in order to prevent exclusion and ensure that technological progress benefits society as a whole;

21. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission.

Or. en