Speaking during a debate on the European Commission's strategy for homelessness in the European Parliament this morning, GUE/NGL MEP Inês Zuber said that the official numbers of homeless in Europe today do not reflect the reality.

“People who really live in the streets are not counted; people evicted from their homes because they're unable to pay their mortgage loans are not counted; people managing to support themselves thanks to the solidarity of family and friends are not counted. And although these phenomena are different to other forms of homelessness, they still need to be taken into account.”

MEP Zuber also stressed the need to address the “pivotal question” of countries being obliged to respect the human rights charter and to take into account peoples' fundamental rights in the field of homelessness.

On the economic front, she hit out against “deteriorating social conditions with salaries, pensions and social support being cut. If we don't talk about all these other associated factors, it's laughable to be talking about a proper structure for homelessness.”

GUE/NGL Press:
Gay Kavanagh +32 473 84 23 20
David Lundy +32 470 85 05 09
Emily Macintosh +32 470 85 05 08