The EEG welcomes the new EU social package announced by the European Commission.

It brings forward several important initiatives, including the first-ever EU Anti-Poverty Strategy, a Council Recommendation on tackling housing exclusion, and Communications on strengthening the European Child Guarantee and reinforcing the Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2030.

Taken together, these initiatives address key drivers of institutionalisation — poverty, lack of housing, and insufficient access to community-based services — and create important conditions for prevention and system reform.

We particularly welcome the planned EU Alliance for Independent Living, which aims to support deinstitutionalisation and promote self-determination for persons with disabilities. This represents an important step towards strengthening implementation and coordination at EU level.

The EEG looks forward to seeing these initiatives translated into concrete action. This will require effective implementation, adequate investment — including through the next Multiannual Financial Framework — and a broader, cross-sectoral approach that also addresses the needs of other groups at risk of institutionalisation.

Ensuring that EU policy and funding consistently support the transition to community-based, rights-based systems remains essential.

More about the new EU social package