The European Commission proposal for the next EU budget is threatening social funding.
EASPD, the European Association of Service providers for Persons with Disabilities joined forces with other European networks within the EUFunds4SocialCoalition to call for strong social investment in the future EU budget.
A joint statement was prepared, to ensure that social investment is strengthened, not weakened, in the next EU budget and sufficient resources are earmarked to support the inclusion of disadvantaged people across Europe.
In particular, the signatories call for the European Social Fund (ESF) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) not be diluted within broader National Regional Partnership Plans and for them to build on what has worked in the current programming period, supporting inclusion, quality services, and equal opportunities across Europe.
The statement was signed by UBC.
The final numbers: 356 signatures, including 68 EU networks, and 288 national organizations from 33 countries.