Child poverty likely to increase in EU amid virus pandemic

The European Union’s external auditor said Tuesday
that child poverty has reached an “unacceptable" level across the world's
largest economy, a situation likely to worsen during the coronavirus pandemic.
According to EU data, almost 23 million people under
18 — approximately one in four children — are at risk of poverty or social
exclusion in the 27-nation bloc.
In a report published Tuesday, the European Court of
Auditors said member states should urgently coordinate their efforts in the
face of COVID-19 as the euro area unemployment rate is expected to increase
from 7.5 % in 2019 to about 9.5 % this year, with devastating consequences on
people's livelihoods.
“Child poverty is a serious issue in the EU,"
said Tony Murphy, the Member of the European Court of Auditors responsible for
the report, during a video conference Tuesday. “Without a sustained and
targeted action, the current unacceptable level is unlikely to decrease. It is
becoming more critical because of the expected impact of the pandemic," he
said.
EU auditors were alarmed well before the pandemic
struck. Their audit was completed prior to the outbreak, and revealed a global
lack of commitment to tackle the issue.
They noted that EU leaders have already failed to
deliver on their promise to bring at least 20 million people out of poverty by
the end of 2020, compared with 2008. According to Eurostat indicators, only
7.15 million people had been lifted out of poverty by 2018.
“EU legislation does not target funding directly at
combating child poverty. Both the Commission and the Member States visited
could not quantify the amount of funds allocated to projects directly tackling
child poverty and therefore could not assess their effectiveness," they
wrote in their report.
Noting the limited role the EU commission can play —
fighting poverty is the responsibility of member states — auditors however
recommended that the union's executive arm defines clear targets and guidance
in support of member states as part of its next action plan to be unveiled next
year.
Responding to the audit, the EU commission said it
takes “the fight against poverty extremely seriously," and recalled its
proposition this year that all member states allocate 5% of a more than
100-billion euros social fund to combat child poverty.