On 20 March 2024, the Council of Europe's European Committee of Social Rights produced a crucial legal assessment on social rights. The Committee's findings highlight some progress, but significant gaps and shortcomings remain in states' efforts to guarantee social rights.
The conclusions adopted by the Committee concern the accepted provisions of different articles of the Revised European Social Charter belonging to the thematic group " Children families and migrants" which includes article 31 on the right to adequate housing.
Article 31§1 requires States Parties to take measures designed to promote access to housing of an adequate standard. States Parties were asked to reply to detailed targeted questions for Article 31§1 of the Charter, as well as, where applicable, previous conclusions of non-conformity, deferrals, or conformity pending receipt of information. The targeted questions concerned issues such as the criteria for adequate housing or measures in favour of vulnerable groups.
Of 10 situations examined during the 2023 monitoring cycle, the ECSR adopted 3 conclusions of conformity and 7 conclusions of non-conformity. The conclusions of non-conformity were based on grounds including insufficient measures taken to improve the housing conditions of Roma (the Netherlands, Slovenia, Latvia, Turkey), inadequate supervision of housing standards (Slovenia, Lithuania), the large proportion of overcrowded dwellings (Latvia), the absence of a comprehensive definition of the notion of adequate housing under the national law (Latvia), insufficient measures taken to ensure that the existing housing stock was of an adequate standard (Turkey). Other conclusions of non-conformity resulted from the failure to provide information on various aspects of the Article 31§1 of the Charter.
Article 31§2 requires States Parties to take measures to prevent and reduce homelessness with a view to its eventual elimination. States Parties were asked to reply to detailed targeted questions for Article 31§2 of the Charter, as well as to provide information responding, where applicable, previous conclusions of non-conformity, deferrals, or conformity pending receipt of information. The targeted questions concerned issues such as preventing homelessness, the existence and scope of any prohibition of evictions during the Covid-19 pandemic, or the availability and adequacy of emergency accommodation during the Covid-19 pandemic.
8 European States, including three EU Member States (the Netherlands, Latvia and Slovenia), were found to be in breach of Article 31 § 2 of the European Social Charter.
The conclusions of non-conformity with the Charter were based on grounds such as the lack of a legal prohibition on carrying out evictions during winter (Andorra, Lithuania), the lack of compensation in the event of an illegal eviction under national law (Andorra), notice periods before an eviction that were too short (the Netherlands), the lack of a prohibition of evictions from shelters without the provision of alternative accommodation (Lithuania, the Netherlands, Slovenia), restrictions on access to emergency accommodation/shelter (the Netherlands, Turkey), discrimination as regards access to housing benefits (Norway), or insufficient measures taken to reduce homelessness (Slovenia, Turkey). Other conclusions of non-conformity resulted from the failure to provide information on various aspects of the Article 31§2 of the Charter.
More information can be found here.
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Subject:
Evictions
Migrant rights
Right to housing
Right to shelter
