EU leaders are meeting today to discuss a common position on the next Multiannual Finance Framework (MFF), following a proposal by the European Commission, which civil society warns risks significantly weakening EU social funding in the years to come.
Ahead of the meeting, RREUSE joined the EUFunds4Social Coalition and signed its open letter to EU leaders, alongside over 250 European and national organisations. The letter warns that the European Commission’s proposal, in its current form, will weaken the EU’s ability to support people and regions most in need. Instead, these organisations recommend that the European Council strengthen the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as more suitable and effective tools to direct EU investment into people and regions most in need.
Signatories call on EU leaders to ensure the next MFF strengthens the EU’s social through the following elements:
- Increase in the share of social spending in National and Regional Partnership Plans from 14% to 25%, linked to the European Pillar of Social Rights;
- Preservation of the ESF+ and ERDF as stand-alone funds, with dedicated budgets and separate rules, ensuring stable long-term investment, and clear roles for each fund;
- Safeguarding of key ESF+ allocations to social inclusion, child poverty, homelessness and youth employment, as well as support for social partners and civil society;
- Securing dedicated funding for social innovation and civil society cooperation, including continuity of the current EaSI strand within a ring-fenced EU facility;
- Strengthening rights-based implementation in line with the European Pillar of Social Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, backed by robust monitoring;
- Reinforcing partnership-based governance, with a stronger role for local and regional authorities and full application of the partnership principle;
- Improving access for smaller organisations through simpler procedures, capacity building, and sustainable co-financing requirements.
