dea eaes o te goa Tenant,n ts con i w s p wat sappenn n te coos o te EuPaaent, wt eas to osn.
Financing public and social housing:
The EU-commission has launched com-plaints against the state aid system orsocial or public rental housing in severalmember states, or instance Sweden andthe Netherlands. The Commission says itis not according the competition rules o the internal market.
The climate and energy package
o the EU, the 20/20/20 commitment: Themembers o the EU shall reduce CO²-emmissions by 20% by 2020 and the shareo renewable energy sources shall be 20%.The housing sector is expected to play amajor role in reducing CO²-emmissionsand increase energy-eciency.
Energy prices in
Europe have beenrising sky-high, with major eects ontenants. In some countries the costs orheating and energy have nearly the samelevel as the basic rent. The EU-Com-mission nally takes action against theenergy cartels xing the prices and willtake measures against uel-poverty. All these elds are competences o theEU Parliament, the Commission andthe Council o the EU. We have to stay alert on national and European level, asat least 80% o all national legislation inEU member states originates nowadaysrom EU-directives.
Strategy or tenants:
We build alliances with the public and not-or-prot housingproviders to deend our national systems which provide decent and aordable hous-ing. We claim, or the EU-legislation-proc-esses, or more energy-eciency standardsin newly constructed and reurbished hous-es, with a maximum o transparency or thetenants concerning their uture heating andenergy costs. We raise public pressure on theenergy-cartels, and encourage national gov-ernments to come into action against uelpoverty.
On October 6th we commemoratethe International Tenants Day and theUN World Habitat Day.
In 1990 39% o all Europeans were ten-ants. In 2005 this gure had decreased to23%. Tenants are under pressure, as conse-quences o privatization, liberalisation andhousing speculation. And o a major short-age o aordable rental housing!Our message is clear “Increase decentand aordable housing in the Europeancities”
Yours / BarbaraSteenbergenIUT- liaison ofceto the EuropeanUnion, barbara.steenbergen@iut.nu
Remarks rm Brussels
In consequence o the Act on Uni-lateral Rent Increase rom March2006 over 50 percent o the pen-sioners in the Czech Republicbecame the poorest group o citizensin the country. Average pension inthe country is 425 Euro per month,but as many as 55 percent o thepensioners receive a pension thatis lower than 425 Euro. The situa-tion is even worse in the capital city Prague where the average pension isonly 376 Euro, but living costs arethe highest in the country.
Not much let…
In Prague today, a pensioner in a sin-gle person household, in a fat o 65m² which cost 89 Euro per month(1,37 Euro/m²) has only got 287Euro let or other expenses.In 2009 ater the valorisation o pen-sions to 425 Euro, and the rent to 3,3Euro/m² , will increase the rents by over57 percent, to 215 Euro, leaving only 210 Euro or other expenses. In the year2010 rents are due to increase by another 32 percent to 4,9 Euro/m², leaving only 107 Euro orother expenses. About 10 percent o the Czechhouseholds; rentals, owner occu-pied and cooperatives, receivehousing allowances o 25 to 37Euro / month.
Hidden proletariat
Few visitors to this beautiul city,realize that behind the nowadaysnice looking historical acades incentral Prague is hidden a pro-letariat o old poor people. I thepensioners do not have childrenor other relatives to support them,they simply go hungry and cold.Old people tend to turn o theheating in order to save money. Also, young amilies and singleadult amilies in the Czech Repub-lic are at risk, as they simply can notaord the higher costs o living.
Contacts: son.iut@cmkos.cz
Hal all pensiners cnsidered pr
CZECH REPUBLIC
Text: Sdruzení Nájemníku CR,Czech Union o Tenants in Prague.
Mrning mist ver Prague.
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