# EUR-Lex - 52013PC0460 - EN

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# 52013PC0460

**Proposal for a COUNCIL RECOMMENDATION on effective Roma integration measures in the Member States /* COM/2013/0460 final - 2013/0229 (NLE) */**

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1.           CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL

Background

Many Roma in Europe face prejudice, intolerance, discrimination and
social exclusion in their daily lives. They are marginalised and mostly live in
very bad socio-economic conditions. On average, only one in two Roma children
attend pre-school or kindergarten; participation in education drops
considerably after compulsory school with only 15% of young Roma adults
completing upper-secondary education; on average, fewer than one in three Roma
report to be in employment; 20 % are not covered by health insurance and
90 % are living below the poverty line[1].
This undermines social cohesion and sustainable human development, hampers
competitiveness and generates costs for society as a whole. Discrimination of
the Roma is also incompatible with the values upon which the EU is founded. The
crux of the problem lies in the close links between discrimination and social
exclusion experienced by Roma.

Policy context

On 5 April 2011, the Commission adopted an
EU Framework for national Roma integration strategies up to 2020[2]. The European Council endorsed
it in June 2011. It expressed the EU’s political will to address the situation
of Roma.

With this Framework, the European
Commission aims to ensure that Member States adopt an effective approach to
Roma integration and endorse goals on the four pillars of education, employment,
health and housing.

Under the Framework, the Commission must
report annually on progress made by the Member States. In 2012, it assessed for
the first time the national strategies presented by the Member States and
adopted horizontal conclusions — COM(2012) 226 final — and specific
indications on the strengths and weaknesses of each Member State’s strategy — SWD(2012)133 final.

One year on, the Commission’s report
focuses on the progress the Member States have made in ensuring that several pre-conditions
are in place for successfully implementing the national strategies. These
pre-conditions include involving regional and local authorities, working
closely with civil society, monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the
strategies, including by reinforcing the role of the National Roma Contact Points,
allocating the necessary funding, stepping up the fight against discrimination
and mainstreaming it into other policies. In its assessment, the Commission
took into consideration input from civil society and other stakeholders.

Building on
the conclusions of this report and on the Commission’s 2012 progress report[3], the proposal for a Council
Recommendation aims to speed up progress by focusing the attention of the
Member States on a number of concrete measures that are crucial for
implementing their strategies more effectively.

Purpose
of the proposal

The proposal for a Council recommendation is
based on the 2011 and 2012 Commission communications[4] and on the 2011 Council Conclusions
on Roma inclusion[5].
It aims to provide guidance to Member States in enhancing
the effectiveness of their measures to achieve Roma integration and to strengthen
the implementation of their national Roma integration strategies or sets of
policy measures to improve the situation of Roma, in line with the challenges
faced by Member States according to the respective size and situation of their
Roma population. It reinforces the EU Framework with a non-binding
legal instrument in order to make it easier for Member States to turn their
commitments into reality. The Recommendation specifically covers:

·
specific targeted action, building on best
practices, to strengthen Roma integration in full
respect of the principle of subsidiarity and without duplicating existing EU
legislation. This is the case for education, employment,
health and housing;

·
horizontal issues that are essential for
putting into practice Roma integration policies and for securing their
sustainability. These particularly include the fight against discrimination and stereotyping; the protection of
children and women; the adoption of a social investment approach; the collection
of information on the situation of Roma to monitor the impact of policies; the translation
of national commitments into local action; the support of the work of bodies that
promote equal treatment of Roma; the reinforcement of the resources and
capacities of the National Roma Contact Points and the development of
transnational cooperation;

·
general principles of securing the transparent
and appropriate allocation of funds  to Roma inclusion (not only EU but also national and local funds). Overall
recommendations on EU funding are based on the experience of the current
programming period and on the proposed Regulation on common provisions on the
European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion
Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European
Maritime and Fisheries Fund.

While primary
responsibility for Roma integration rests with national public authorities, it
remains a challenge given that the social and economic integration of Roma is a
two-way process which requires a change of mindsets of the majority of the
people as well as of members of the Roma communities

Consistency
with other policies and objectives of the Union

Equality is one of the Union's founding values and core aims under Article 2 TEU.

Moreover, Article 3 TEU
enshrines the combat against social exclusion and discrimination as one of the Union's aims.

In accordance with
Article 8 TFEU, the EU aims to eliminate inequalities, and promote equality,
between men and women in all its activities. Article 10 TFEU states that ‘in
defining and implementing its policies and activities, the Union shall aim to
combat discrimination based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or
belief, disability, age or sexual orientation’.

Finally, Article 21 of
the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union particularly prohibits
discrimination on the grounds of race or ethnic origin among other grounds.

The proposal is consistent with existing
secondary legislation in the field of anti-discrimination in so far as it
complements the established legal framework. Council Directive 2000/43/EC
implements the principle of equal treatment between persons irrespective of
racial or ethnic origin and sets out a binding framework by prohibiting
discrimination on the basis of racial or ethnic origin throughout the EU in the
areas of employment and training, education, social protection (including
social security and healthcare), social advantages and access to goods and
services (including housing). It prohibits direct and indirect discrimination, harassment
and instruction to discriminate. All EU Member States have transposed this
Directive into national legislation. The European Commission checks that the
Directive is correctly implemented and will publish a report on its
implementation in 2013.

2.           RESULTS OF CONSULTATIONS WITH THE
INTERESTED PARTIES

The proposal is based on the work that took
place during two meetings of a group of Member States set up in 2012 in the context of the network of National Roma Contact
Points[6].
The meetings, held on 7-8 November and 6-7 December 2012, and to which
participation was on a voluntary basis, produced fruitful discussions between
the Member States on a number of issues considered crucial to boost Roma
inclusion.

In line with the EU Framework, Member States
were requested to submit National Roma Integration Strategies by the end of 2011.
All Member States fulfilled their commitments in this respect and the national
Roma integration strategies were published on the Commission's website to be
accessible for all citizens. The Commission received a wide range of
contributions from various stakeholders, including civil society, on the
strategies themselves and more recently on their implementation[7], including
during a dialogue between Commissioners and civil society representatives on 15
May 2013.

In addition, regular meetings took place with
the representatives of European umbrella Roma organisations[8] on the challenges and most
important issues required at all levels to actively promote Roma inclusion.

Given the number of contributions received in
this framework, the Commission considered that no further public consultation
was necessary specifically on the Recommendation.

3.           LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL

Legal basis

A proposal for a Council Recommendation must
link its content to a policy area of the Treaties. Such a link is also necessary
to determine the adoption rules of the act (unanimity or qualified majority).

According to settled Court of Justice case
law, the choice of a legal basis must be based on objective criteria that can
be judicially reviewed, including in particular the aim and content of the
measure in question[9].

Article 292 TFEU sets out the Council’s
mandate to adopt recommendations. It reads as follows:

‘The Council shall adopt recommendations.
It shall act on a proposal from the Commission in all cases where the Treaties
provide that it shall adopt acts on a proposal from the Commission. It shall
act unanimously in those areas in which unanimity is required for the adoption
of a Union act. The Commission, and the European Central Bank in the specific
cases provided for in the Treaties, shall adopt recommendations.’

The EU’s right to act in matters of
anti-discrimination, notably with regard to discrimination on the grounds of
race or ethnic origin, stems from Article 19(1) TFEU. This provision is the
legal basis for any binding and non-binding measures to combat discriminatory acts
and practices. It reads as follows:

‘1. Without
prejudice to the other provisions of the Treaties and within the limits of the
powers conferred by them upon the Union, the Council, acting unanimously in
accordance with a special legislative procedure and after obtaining the consent
of the European Parliament, may take appropriate action to combat
discrimination based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief,
disability, age or sexual orientation.’

Article 292 TFEU is therefore to be read
together with the appropriate legal basis for the substance of the proposal, namely
Article 19(1) TFEU.

Subsidiarity and proportionality

According to the principle of
subsidiarity, the EU shall act only if and insofar as the objectives of the
proposed action cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States (necessity
test), but can rather, either by reason of its scale or effects, be better
achieved at EU level (test of EU added value).

The measures introduced by some Member
States vary broadly in terms of scope and effectiveness and many Member States
have not taken specific action in the area of Roma inclusion. According to the
conclusions of the 2013 progress report on the implementation of the National
Roma Integration Strategies[10],
the Commission took note that while Member States have had the legal
possibility to act to address the issue of Roma integration, the measures planned
so far are not sufficient. Due to the lack of a coordinated approach to the
issue of Roma integration, there are growing discrepancies among Member States.

Scattered, divergent regulation at national
level is also bound to exacerbate the situation by creating further practical problems
between Member States. Indeed, tackling the issue of Roma integration in an
uncoordinated manner has proven to be inefficient in the European Union as a
whole, where the free movement of citizens is guaranteed. This situation could result
in a significant increase of Roma migrants in Member States where living
conditions are more favourable and where social inclusion measures for the disadvantaged
people are more favourable.

In this regard, the present proposal aims
to supplement existing EU action in the areas concerned (i.e.: free movement of
citizens Directive 2004/38/EC, racial discrimination Directive 2000/43/EC) in
view of achieving more efficient results by better coordinating the measures to
be adopted by the Member States.

The objectives of the proposed action cannot
be sufficiently achieved by the Member States on their own and may therefore be
better achieved through coordinated action at EU level rather than through
national initiatives of varying scope, ambition and effectiveness.

According to the principle of
proportionality, the content and form of EU action shall not exceed what is
necessary to achieve the objectives of the Treaties. As past experience shows, in
spite of some progress achieved in the Member States and at EU level over the
past few years, little has changed in the day-to-day situation of most Roma.
According to the Commission’s findings, strong and proportionate measures are
still not in place to tackle the social and economic problems of much of the EU’s
Roma population.

In line with the proportionality principle,
the non-binding proposal is limited to setting common objectives and recommending
specific measures, including positive action measures specifically provided for
under Article 5 of Directive 2000/43/EC to prevent or compensate for
disadvantages linked to racial or ethnic origin under the conditions developed
in the case law of the CJEU in the area of sex discrimination[11]. This gives Member States enough
leeway to determine how to best achieve these common objectives at national
level, taking into account national, regional or local circumstances.

The proposal will not impede on the Member
States' competence to deal with the issue of the social inclusion of
disadvantaged communities, like the Roma, as it does not impose rigid obligations.
It merely recommends several options to Member States, leaving them determine
the appropriate way of achieving the objectives set out.

Choice of instrument

The choice of a non-binding instrument aims
at providing practical guidelines to the Member States as regards the problem
of Roma social inclusion, but without laying down strict binding rules.

The choice for a Council recommendation aims
at reinforcing the existing political commitments of Member States while ensuring
consistent minimum standards in the European Union in the implementation of
effective national Roma strategies. It also strengthens transnational
cooperation, while allowing a sufficient margin of manoeuvre to Member States
on the forms and methods.

4.           BUDGETARY IMPLICATION

The proposal has no implications for
the EU’s budget.

2013/0229 (NLE)

Proposal for a

COUNCIL RECOMMENDATION

on effective Roma integration measures in
the Member States

THE COUNCIL OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the
Functioning of the European Union, in particular Article 19(1) and Article 292 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the
European Commission,

Whereas:

(1)       Article 2 and Article 3 TEU
enshrine the right to equality, the fight against social exclusion and discrimination
as essential values and objectives of the European Union.

(2)       Article 10 TFEU states
that ‘in defining and implementing its policies and activities, the Union shall aim to combat discrimination based on [...] racial or ethnic origin’.

(3)       Article 19(1) TFEU enables
the adoption of measures to combat discrimination based on sex, racial or
ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation.

(4)       Article 21(1) of the
Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union obliges the institutions,
bodies, offices and agencies of the EU and the Member States, when implementing
EU law, to respect the prohibition of discrimination on any ground, such as
race, colour and ethnic or racial origin, and membership of a national
minority, and to promote its application in accordance with their powers.

(5)       Council Directive
2000/43/EC[12]
sets out a binding framework prohibiting discrimination on the basis of racial
or ethnic origin throughout the Union in employment and training, education,
social protection (including social security and health care), social
advantages and access to goods and services (including housing).

(6)       The term “Roma” is used –
similarly to other political documents of the European Parliament and the
European Council – as an umbrella which includes groups of people who have more
or less similar cultural characteristics, such as Sinti, Travellers, Kalé, Gens
du voyage, etc. whether sedentary or not[13].

(7)       Many Roma in the EU are in
a worse socio-economic situation than the general population and benefit less
than the rest of the disadvantaged population from general social inclusion
measures. They therefore require additional, more ambitious social inclusion
measures adapted to their situation and needs. As Roma often face
discrimination, social exclusion and deep poverty, they are considered
vulnerable and at greater risk of human trafficking.

(8)      Roma who are third-country
nationals staying legally in the Member States are particularly vulnerable as
they share the same severe living conditions as many Roma EU citizens, whilst
facing also challenges of migrants coming from outside the EU.

(9)       In
the context of free movement and intra-EU mobility, it
is necessary to accompany the full exercise of free movement rights with
improvements in the living conditions of Roma, and their economic and social
integration in Member States of origin as in Member States of residence.

(10)     The European Parliament
Resolutions on the Situation of Roma People in Europe (9 September 2010) and on
the EU Strategy on Roma Inclusion (9 March 2011) called on the Commission and
the Member States to mobilise existing EU strategies and instruments with a
view to securing the socio-economic inclusion of Roma.

(11)     The 2011 Commission's
Communication An EU Framework for National Roma Integration Strategies[14] called on Member States
to adopt or further develop a comprehensive approach to Roma integration and
endorse a number of common goals in education, employment, health and housing
in order to speed up the integration of Roma.

(12)     The Council adopted Conclusions[15] on 19 May 2011 on the EU
Framework for national Roma integration strategies, expressing the Member
States' commitment to advance the social and economic inclusion of the Roma.

(13)     The Conclusions of the
European Council of 23 and 24 June 2011 called for the rapid implementation of
the Council's conclusions of 19 May 2011 on the EU framework for national Roma
integration strategies up to 2020 in particular as regards the preparation,
updating or development of Member States' national Roma inclusion strategies or
integrated sets of policy measures for improving the situation of the Roma.

(14)     The 2012 Commission's
Communication National Roma integration strategies: a first step in the
implementation of the EU Framework[16]
and the accompanying staff working document[17]
provided the results from the first assessment of all national Roma integration
strategies and invited Member States to envisage a number of adaptations as a
way forward.

(15)     The Commission enhanced its
dialogue with the Member States on Roma integration, in particular by
establishing in October 2012 the network of National Roma Contact Points, in
order to discuss solutions to the identified challenges. In November and
December 2012, a group of National Contact Points further discussed how to
enhance the effectiveness of measures to achieve Roma integration in the Member
States, and reported subsequently to the entire network.

(16)     In its 2013 Communication
on Progress in implementing national Roma integration strategies, the
Commission highlights the need for further action in order to secure the
necessary preconditions for a successful implementation of measures aimed at
stepping up Roma integration as soon as possible.

(17)     The Europe 2020 Strategy
has given new impetus to the fight against poverty and social exclusion by
setting a common European target to reduce the number of people at risk of
poverty and social exclusion, to reduce the rate of early school leaving,
increase school attainment and employment levels. Roma inclusion is an
essential part of the convergent EU and Member States' efforts in this respect.
In this context, the current governance of the European Semester promotes
implementation of the relevant country specific recommendations, and the Social
Investment Package[18]
provides further guidance for the efforts to secure inclusive growth.

(18)     In light of the
considerations above and of the shortcomings identified, while fully respecting
the principle of subsidiarity and the Member States’ primary responsibility for
Roma inclusion, the effectiveness of Roma integration measures needs to be
improved.

(19)     This Recommendation aims to
build on the recommendations in the Commission Communications, European
Parliament Resolutions and Council Conclusions on Roma inclusion, to complement
current EU legislation on anti-discrimination and to help make its implementation
and enforcement more effective.

(20)     This Recommendation does
not cover difference of treatment based on nationality and is without prejudice
to provisions and conditions related to the legal status of Roma under national
and Union law or to the legal effects of that status.

(21)     In 2011, the Commission
proposed in the draft Common Provisions Regulation[19] that Member States set out an
integrated approach to address the specific needs of geographical areas most
affected by poverty or of target groups at highest risk of discrimination or
exclusion, with special regard to marginalised communities. In complementarity
with the other European Structural and Investment Funds it also proposed in the
draft European Social Fund[20]
regulation for the 2014-2020 programming period an investment priority for the
integration of marginalised communities such as the Roma.

HEREBY RECOMMENDS:

1.           PURPOSE

1.1.        The purpose of this Recommendation
is to provide guidance to Member States in enhancing the effectiveness of their
measures to achieve Roma integration and strengthen the implementation of their
national Roma integration strategies or sets of policy measures to improve the
situation of Roma.

2.           SUBSTANTIVE POLICY ISSUES

Targeted policy measures

2.1.        With a view to ensuring
full equality in practice, the Member States should take targeted measures to
ensure equal treatment and respect of fundamental rights, including equal access
of Roma to education, employment, healthcare, housing and public utilities.
This should include, in compliance with the case-law of the Court of Justice of
the European Union, specific measures to prevent or compensate for
disadvantages linked to racial or ethnic origin.

2.2.        The measures to be adopted
should be based on socio-economic or geographic indicators, such as high
long-term unemployment, low level of education attainment, or disadvantaged and/or
segregated areas.

Access to education

2.3.        The Member States should
take specific measures to ensure equal treatment and secure the full access of
Roma to good quality and mainstream education, with a view to close the gap
between Roma and other pupils and ensure that all Roma pupils will complete at
least compulsory education, and notably primary education. This goal should be
attained by:

(a)
eliminating school segregation, including by
putting an end to the inappropriate placement of Roma pupils in special needs
schools;

(b)
reducing early school leaving[21] throughout education,
including at secondary level, with a focus on vocational tracks;

(c)
increasing the access to and quality of early childhood
education and care, including targeted support, as necessary;

(d)
using inclusive and personalised teaching and
learning methods, including learning support for struggling learners and
fighting illiteracy;

(e)
encouraging greater parental involvement and
supporting families with school mediators dedicated to Roma;

(f)
improving teacher training and school mediation
dedicated to Roma;

(g)
widening access to second-chance education, supporting
the transition between educational levels, and ensuring that Roma acquire a mix
of skills that will help them to enter the labour market.

2.4.        The Member States should
take specific measures to encourage Roma participation in secondary and
tertiary education.

Access to employment

2.5.        In addition to the targeted
measures Member States may take, they should ensure equal treatment and close
the gap between Roma and other workers so as to improve the situation of Roma as
regards employment within their mainstream policies. This goal should be
attained by:

(a)
supporting first work experience, on-the-job
training, life-long learning and skills development;

(b)
supporting self-employment and entrepreneurship;

(c)
providing equal access to mainstream public
employment services, along with specific and individualised services to Roma
job seekers, and promoting the employment of qualified Roma civil servants;

(d)
training and employing qualified Roma mediators
for the provision of counselling and advice on career opportunities;

(e)
eliminating barriers, including discrimination,
to (re)entering the open labour market.

Access to healthcare

2.6.        The Member States should take
specific measures to ensure equal treatment and close the gap between Roma and
other patients so as to improve the access of Roma, on a par with the latter, to
prevention, primary, emergency and specialised healthcare services. This goal
should be attained by:

(a)
ensuring the provision of basic social security
coverage and comprehensive health services to Roma;

(b)
offering regular medical check-ups, prenatal and
postnatal care and family planning;

(c)
applying free vaccination schemes targeting in
particular those living in marginalised and remote areas;

(d)
training qualified Roma health mediators.

Access to housing

2.7.        The Member States should
take specific measures to ensure equal treatment and close the gap between Roma
and the general population so as to extend their housing policies and measures
to Roma. This goal should be attained by:

(a)
eliminating spatial segregation and promoting
desegregation;

(b)
promoting non-discriminatory access to social
housing, including in relation to the quality of social housing available to
Roma, as well as the availability of halting sites for travellers/non-sedentary
Roma;

(c)
training qualified Roma mediators for promoting the
use of social housing and of public utilities and infrastructures to all Roma.

2.8.        The Member States should ensure
that applications from local authorities for urban regeneration projects shall include,
whenever relevant, integrated housing interventions in favour of marginalised
communities. The Member States should also promote community-led local
development and integrated territorial investments supported by the European
Structural and Investment Funds[22].

Funding

2.9.        The Member States should
allocate sufficient funding to their national and local strategies and action
plans from any available sources of funding (local, national, EU and
international) in view of achieving the objectives of Roma inclusion. This
should be facilitated by allocating an adequate share of of EU cohesion policy
resources to investment into people through ESF, and allocating at least 20% of
this amount in each Member State on social inclusion.

2.10.      The Member States should
ensure that appropriate measures are taken to include Roma integration as a
priority in the Partnership Agreements on the use of European Structural and
Investment Funds[23]
for the period 2014–2020, taking into account the size and poverty rates of the
Roma communities and the gap between Roma and non-Roma, as well as the challenges
identified by the European Semester for most concerned Member States.

2.11.      The Member States should
improve their management, monitoring and evaluation capacities with the support
of ESIF technical assistance.

2.12.      The Member States should
also support capacity building of local authorities and civil society organisations
by using national and EU funds so that they can effectively implement projects.

2.13.      The allocation of public
funding for implementing national Roma integration strategies or integrated
sets of policy measures should follow a targeted approach for the specific needs
of geographical areas or target groups most affected by poverty or social
exclusion, such as Roma.

3.           HORIZONTAL POLICY MEASURES

Anti-discrimination

3.1.        The Member States should ensure
the effective practical enforcement of Directive 2000/43/EC on the ground, notably
by screening their national, regional and local administrative regulations and
practices in order to identify and repeal any discriminatory or segregating
measures. The relevant case law of the European Court of Human Rights should
serve as an additional reference for the identification of illegal provisions
or practices.

3.2.        The Member States should implement
desegregation measures concerning Roma regionally and locally. Policies and
measures to combat segregation should be accompanied by appropriate training
and information programmes addressed to local civil servants and
representatives of civil society and Roma themselves.

3.3.        The Member States should
equally ensure that, in cases of forced evictions, in addition to the EU acquis,
international human rights obligations, notably under the European Convention
on Human Rights, are fully respected.

3.4.        The Member States should implement
measures to fight discrimination against the Roma in society, in particular by:

(a)
raising awareness in Roma communities and among the
general public of the benefits of Roma integration;

(b)
raising the general public’s awareness of the
multicultural nature of societies and including these aspects in school
curricula and material where relevant.

Protection of Roma children and women

3.5.        The Member States should combat
discrimination faced by Roma children and women, including multiple
discrimination, by enforcing legislation on underage marriages, fighting forced
marriages, and forbidding begging involving children. The Member States should
equally involve in this exercise all relevant actors, such as health and labour
inspectors, police, education experts and members of the judiciary and representatives
of civil society.

Poverty reduction and social inclusion

3.6.        The Member States should combat
the poverty and social exclusion affecting Roma people through investment in
human capital and social cohesion policies, in particular by:

a)      enabling the implementation of Roma
inclusion policies through targeted and conditional support schemes, including
benefits and services supporting (re)entry to the labour market; promoting
inclusive labour markets and providing adequate income support;

b)      making social benefits and services granted
to Roma more sustainable and adequate through better targeting, simplification
of procedures, fight against fraud and errors, greater take-up of social
assistance schemes and by providing incentives for converting undeclared work into
formal employment.

3.7.        The Member States, taking
into account the size of their Roma populations, should make Roma integration one
of the key aspects of their National Reform Programmes in the context of the
Europe 2020 strategy.

Empowerment

3.8.        The Member States should
empower and support Roma at all stages of their lives, and invest in targeted
youth guarantee schemes, life-long learning and active ageing programmes.

3.9.        The Member States should
carry out information activities to further raise awareness among Roma of their
rights (notably in relation to discrimination and the possibilities of seeking
redress) and duties.

4.           STRUCTURAL MEASURES

Local action

4.1.        The Member States should,
while respecting the autonomy of local and regional authorities,
encourage local action plans or strategies including baselines, benchmarks and
measurable targets for Roma inclusion as well as appropriate funding.

4.2.        They should involve regions,
local authorities and local civil society in reviewing, managing, implementing and
monitoring their national strategies. Relevant stakeholders should be involved as
regards partnership agreements and operational programmes co-financed by the European
Structural and Investment Funds. Central and local authorities should cooperate
constantly in the implementation of the strategies. To this end, the Member
States should allocate sufficient funding to local public authorities to facilitate
the implementation of targeted sets of policies at local level.

Monitoring and evaluating policies

4.3.        The Member States should monitor
the effectiveness of their national strategies or integrated sets of policy
measures and the outcomes of local action plans, programmes or strategies. To
this end, they should strengthen the collection of qualitative and quantitative
data on Roma integration and on the progress achieved through the
abovementioned strategies or measures. The implementation of the strategies
should be evaluated and compared to the baseline in order to assess their
relevance effectiveness, sustainability, and coordination.

4.4.        With the support of the European
Union Agency for Fundamental Rights and in line with applicable national and EU
law, the Member States should define core indicators and data collection
methods to measure progress on a regular basis, particularly at local level, enabling
efficient reporting and comparison between the situation of Roma and non-Roma
in and across Member States. They should also set baselines and measurable
targets for their strategies and action plans.

Bodies for the promotion of equal
treatment

4.5.        The Member States should support
the work and institutional capacity of bodies for the promotion of equal
treatment by granting them adequate resources so they can effectively provide legal
and judicial assistance and support to Roma victims of discrimination.

4.6.        They should ensure regular
dialogue between their National Roma Contact Points and national bodies for the
promotion of equal treatment.

National Contact Points for Roma
integration

4.7.        The Member States should
provide National Contact Points for Roma integration with adequate mandate,
financial and human resources so that they can effectively coordinate the
cross-sectoral implementation and monitoring of Roma integration policies at
national and local level. They should ensure that National Contact Points for
Roma integration are consulted during the decision-making processes regarding
the definition, funding and implementation of relevant policies. The National
Contact Points for Roma integration should facilitate the participation and
involvement of Roma civil society in the implementation of national Roma
integration strategies and local action plans.

Transnational cooperation

4.8.        The Member States should
develop and participate, in addition to the measures taken within the EU
framework for National Roma Integration Strategies, in transnational forms of cooperation
at national, regional or local level, through policy initiatives, in particular
projects and bilateral or multilateral agreements, in order to:

a)      provide solutions to problems related
to the cross-border mobility of Roma within the European Union;

b)      support
mutual learning and the multiplication of good practices, for example by
cooperation between authorities managing structural funds with a view to designing
effective Roma inclusion interventions.

5.           REPORTING AND FOLLOW-UP

5.1.        The Member States should
take the necessary measures to ensure the application of this Recommendation at
the latest by [ADD date 24 months from the publication] and should notify the
Commission of any measures taken in accordance with this Recommendation by that
date.

5.2.        The Member States should
thereafter communicate any new adopted measures to the Commission on an annual
basis, at the end of each year.

5.3.        The information provided by
the Member States will feed into the preparation of the annual Commission
reports and submitted to the European Parliament and the Council on the
implementation of national Roma integration strategies as well as into the European
Semester of the Europe 2020 Strategy with the formulation of the Country
Specific Recommendations.

5.4.        On this basis, the
Commission will monitor the situation closely and will assess in three years
after its adoption the need to revise and update this Recommendation.

Done at Brussels,

For
the Council

The
President

[1]               The Situation of Roma in 11 Member States; Survey
Results at a Glance, Fundamental Rights Agency and United Nations
Development Programme, 2012.

[2]               COM(2011) 173 final.

[3]               COM(2012) 226 final.

[4]               Communication on an EU Framework for national Roma
integration strategies COM(2011) 173; Communication on a first step
in implementing the EU Framework COM(2012) 226.

[5]               Council Conclusions of 19 May 2011 on an EU Framework
for national Roma integration strategies.

[6]               These
countries include Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

[7]               This includes reports from civil society coalitions
organised by the Decade of Roma Inclusion Secretariat Foundation in six Member
States (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Spain) and two
enlargement countries (Albania, FYROM), reports from the network of independent
experts on social inclusion (http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1025&langId=en),
the report from the European Roma Information Office, Discrimination against
Roma in the EU in 2012, the written feedbacks from Eurocities and from
Eurodiaconia and research papers from the Academic network on romani studies (http://romanistudies.eu/news/contributions_from_members/).

[8]               These organisations were represented by the European
Roma Policy Coalition (ERPC). Members of ERPC participating in the meetings
included the European Roma Information Office (ERIO), the Open Society
Foundations (OSF), the European Network Against Racism (ENAR), the European
Roma Grassroots Organisation (ERGO) and Amnesty International (AI).

[9]               See for instance the judgment of the Court of Justice
of 26 March 1996, C-271/94, Parliament v Council, paragraph 14.

[10]             This report has been based on information and findings
provided by the Member States and a number of relevant stakeholders.

[11]             See Case C-409/95 Marschall [1997] ECR I-6363,
paragraph 35. See also case C-450/93 Kalanke [1995] ECR I-3051,
paragraphs 22 to 24, case C-158/97 Badeck [2000] ECRI 2000 p. I-1875, as
well as case C-407/98 Abrahamsson [2000] ECR I-5539.

[12]             OJ L 180, 19.7.2000, p. 22.

[13]             (SEC(2010)400).

[14]             COM(2011) 173 final.

[15]             Council Conclusions on an EU Framework for National
Roma Integration Strategies up to 2020, document 106665/11 of 19 May 2011.

[16]             COM(2012) 226 final.

[17]             SWD(2012) 133 final.

[18]             Communication Towards Social Investment for Growth
and Cohesion — including implementing the European Social Fund 2014-2020,
COM(2013) 83 final.

[19]             Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament
and of the Council laying down common provisions on the European Regional
Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund, the European
Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European Maritime and Fisheries
Fund covered by the Common Strategic Framework and laying down general
provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund
and the Cohesion Fund and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 -
COM(2011) 615.

[20]             Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament
and of the Council on the European Social Fund and repealing Regulation (EC) No
1081/2006 - COM(2011) 607.

[21]             See Council Recommendation of 28 June 2011 on policies
to reduce early school leaving, OJ C 191 1.7.2011. One of the Europe 2020 headline targets agreed by the European
Council is to reduce the share of early school leavers to less than 10% and to
ensure that at least 40% of the younger generation have a tertiary
qualification or equivalent.

[22]             European Social Fund (ESF), European Regional
Development Fund (ERDF), Cohesion Fund (CF), European Agricultural Fund for
Rural Development (EAFRD) and European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF).

[23]             ERDF can support infrastructures in the health,
education and housing sectors.