Today, the European Parliament’s special committee on the housing crisis in the EU discussed its first draft report, put together by the Spanish MEP from the European People’s Party (EPP).

The committee has spent months consulting experts and stakeholders in interesting hearings, and missions to EU member states. Members received a lot of valuable input and ideas - yet these are unfortunately not reflected in the draft.   

For the Socialists and Democrats - who have brought housing to the forefront of the EU agenda and fought hard to set up this committee - this draft is unacceptable. The process so far demonstrates a blatant disregard for the working methods and ethos of this House.

This is not the time for national ideological games. This is the time to join forces to find solutions to the housing crisis. We can only achieve this by working with like-minded colleagues across the political spectrum, and by giving a real voice to our cities, regions, trade unions, and civil society.

Gaby Bischoff, S&D vice-president for social Europe, said:

“This draft is pure Spanish EPP ideology and offers no concrete solutions. Housing is far too important to European citizens to waste this opportunity on ideological battles. We will focus on the substance and dedicate ourselves to building alliances with those who want to ensure that a home is a human right, not a privilege for the few.

“We want more EU investment in affordable and decent homes. We want proper regulation of short-term rentals so our cities are for living, not just tourism. We want to end speculation and financialisation. We want to strengthen tenants’ rights, protect the housing rights of the most vulnerable, and eradicate homelessness. We want a solid report that will make a real difference for our citizens.

“European citizens would not accept anything less. It is simple: our challenge is to shift the focus from the right to own to the right to a roof. We call on all like-minded forces who care about what our citizens need to join us and turn this draft into a truly European report. That is what Europeans expect from us.”

Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, S&D negotiator on the European Parliament’s housing crisis report, added:

“Key S&D issues are either entirely absent from this draft or treated as an afterthought - such as speculation, financialisation, homelessness, short-term rentals, dereliction and public funding for affordable housing. Many core S&D demands are ignored - for instance, rental controls are only mentioned to denounce them. Tenants’ rights are barely addressed, apart from flexibility in landlord-tenant relations. Vacancy strategies are not mentioned at all. 

“S&Ds are ready to roll up their sleeves and work with like-minded colleagues. We will enter the amending and negotiating phase in good faith, but significant changes are needed for this draft to be acceptable to us.”