Housing Europe: Warm Homes for All – how to tackle the challenge of our generation

Housing Europe dedicates June to the issue of energy poverty as part of its ongoing “Housing for All” campaign.

It’s one of the most alarming phenomena of our times, affecting around 11% of Europeans.Despite being considered the most developed part of the world, the European Union is struggling to tackle energy poverty. Although there is no single indicator for energy poverty in the EU, available figures illustrate the increase of energy costs and growing inability for low income households to cope with them.

The situation on the ground:

  • 54 million people cannot keep their home adequately warm
  • 161 million face disproportionate housing expenditure
  • 87 million live in poor quality dwellings and
  • 42 million face arrears on their utility bills

At the same time, the number of people with complex housing needs in Europe is increasing, especially in those countries hit most by the financial crisis. In Greece, for instance, according to the latest European Parliament survey, 36% of households suffer from energy poverty, while tens of thousands of them have no access to power and/or heating.

Find out more here.