ARCHIVESHISTORIQUES
DELACOMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEEDES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM(79)657
Vol.1979/0222

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COMMISSION OFTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
COM(79)657 final
Brussels,23November1979
Proposalfora
COUNCIL DECISION
concerning aninterimprogrammetocombatpoverty
(submittedtotheCouncilbytheCommission )
S.
tel"XM
C0M(79)657final

Commentary . .
On21January19.74theCouncilofMinistersadoptedaResolutionconcerning
aSocialActionProgramme.AmongstthepriorityactionsnotedbytheCouncilwas
"theimplementation/incooperation withthe.MemberStates-,ofdifferentspecific
measurestocombatpovertybypreparingpilotschemes".
Giventhe"responsibi Iityofimplementing thismandate,theCommission,'after
consulting (anumberofgovernmentrepresentatives andindependentexperts,pre-.
paredadocumentsettingouttheobjectivesoftheprogramme,thecriteriafor
theselectionofschemesandthetypesoffinancialassistancewhichcould be'
providedbytheCommunity.Theseproposalswerediscussedintheforums ,ofthe
EuropeanParliamentandtheEconomicandSocialCommitteewhobothgavetheir
firmsupport.TheproposalswereapprovedintheCouncilDecisionof.22July-
1975.ThisDecisionenabledtoth«Commissiontopromoteor'assistschemes
withinthelimitsoftherelevantappropriations enteredinthebudgetofthe
Communities for1975and1976.Theallocations wereforamountsof2.5million
and2.875millionu.a.respectively . -"
On27November1975theCommissionapprovedalistof21pilotschemesproposed
bytheGovernments oftheMemberStatesandtwo-cross-national studiesproposed
bytheCommission -andacceptedbythe.MemberStatesconcerned.Contractsforthe
firstworkingyearweresignedon1December1975.
TheDecisionobligedtheCommissiontoconsulttherepr'esentati vesoftheMember
ν "·Statesonalimattersofimportanceconcerning -thedevelopment oftheprogramme.
Aninformal,advisorygroupwassetup.comprisingninegovernmentrepresentatives
sevenindependentexpertsandtwomembersrepresenting bothsidesofindustry.
ThegroupmetinMarch1976forthefirsttime.
Onthebasisofthefirstreportfromthe*'CommissiontotheCouncilonthe'
"ActionAgainstPoverty"Programme (C0M(76)718finaI)andconsideringthat-the
majorityofschemeshadnotyetbeencompleted,on12December1977theCouncil
adoptedanewDecisionamendingDecision75/458/EECconcerningtheprogramme.
TheCouncilthoughtitdesirablethattheschemessti11in-progressshouldcon­
tinuetobeassistedbytheCommunitywithinthelimitsoftherelevantap­
propriations enteredinthebudgetoftheCommunities for1977,1978and1979
(3.5-5-5.75millionEUA)andthatitwouldalsobedesirable .tofinance
asmallnumberofnewschemesinordertocompletetheprogramme .asawhole.
OnthebasisoftheCouncil'sDecisionon29MarchT978theCommissionadopted
aseriesofpilotschemesandstudiesextendingthe'programme (SEC(78)1360).

-3-
Inaddition on6December 1978 the Commission decided :
a)tocontinue theimplementation ofschemes inprogress ,most ofwhich hadbeen
approved in1975
I
b)tocontinue theimplementation ofapilot study which hadbeen updated
c)toimplement aproposal -concerning the 'Evaluation andcontrol 1ofthe
programme '
d)toimplement aproposal relating totheelaboration of8national reports on
poverty andmeasures taken tocombat itintheMember States ofthe Community .
Onthe basis ofArticle 6ofthe aforementioned Decision the Commission
submitted tothe Council and the European Parliament asecond report
on^heresults available relative totheprojects undertaken with
financial assistance from the Community .
Upon completion oftheprogramme and by30June 1981 atthe latest the Com­
mission will submit afinal report consisting ofanevaluation oftheresults
obtained inthecontext oftheprogramme tocombat poverty .
Given that this report will bebased upon :
-a final report oneach proiect ; \
-anevaluation report ontheprogramme ofpilot schemes and studies asa
whole ; \ ,
-aseries ofnational reports onpoverty andmeasures taken tocombat itin
theMember States ofthe Community
andgiven the importance oftheproblem itisunlikely that the Council will be
able todraw -upitsconclusions before thebeginning of1982 .
Inorder tospan theperiod between theendoftheprogramme ,1December 1980 ,(1)
andtheapplication oftheCouncil 'sconclusions ,forwhich theearliest date
will bethesecond half of1982 ,theCommission isnowsubmitting anewdraft
Council decision defining proposals forthe interim period forthepurpose
ofcontinuing research andaction tocombat poverty .
(1)Distinction must bemade between thecommitment ofthebudget ,which must
becarried outbefore 1December :1979 andtheendoftheprogramme which
isnotuntil 1December 1980 .

Themain justification can befound inthe fact _that poverty inthe
Community has not diminished toany great extent and itmay even have
increased since the first programme tocombat poverty was launched ,
given thepresent economic crisis .TheEuropean Parliament ,has already
voiced thepolitical preoccupations inthis matter byproposing annual
Community aid inorder toensure the continuation ofresearch tocombat
poverty andtopromote actions based "ontheresult ^ofsuch schemes .
Itisevident that these enquiries constitute apriority action for
theCommission contributing inasignificant manflfer toan~interpenetration
between Community v/ork and work undertaken intheMember States and
adding aCommunity dimension tosuch work .

Itis,therefore ,proposed ,tousetheexperiences ofthewhole ofthefirst
.programme ofpilot schemes andstudies atpresent being undertaken ,including
thenational reports which arebeing prepared .
Resources will beconcentrated upon asmall number offields oraspects
where there isastrong possibility ofimproving thesituation intheshort -
term .
'
Inorder to .bring outthose aspects oftheproblem which could profitably be
elaborated inorder toprepare theprogramme forthe interim period the Com-.'
mission intends toorganise aseminar inthespring of1980 ,whose main aim
will betoenable experts toexchange theprovisional conclusions drawn from th
•projects undertaken with financial assistance from theCommunity .
Whilst itisimpossible atpresent tospecify thecontent ofsuch aninterim
programme itispossible togive the'fol lowing illustrative exampl-es :.
(i)theuseofpoverty indicators ,which have emerged from thepilot schemes
andstudies toindicate persons orareas inneed ofspecial assistance ;
(ii)theadministrative integration ofsocial insurance andsocial assistance
services atthe local level ;
(iii)aserious study' ofthereasons whysocial aiddoes notalways reach
target populations . *
•For (1)this refers toindicators emanating mainly from thestudy „
being undertaken on"Persistent poverty ,examined initslegal ,social
andinstitutional context with aview toitselimination and/or
prevention "being undertaken inthefollowing regions :
-Province ofLuxembourg . '
-Liège <
-Hasselt ' . •.
-Maastricht
-Sarrebruck
V '
-Metz-Thionvi lle
-Grand-Duché deLuxembourg . *
These indicators will lead to x
•abetter ,knowledge ofthescope andextent ofpersistent poverty ;

-6~
-. .abetter understanding ofthe factors and causes which cancontribute
■tothepersistence orthetransmission ofpoverty ;
- JT .
;.abetter 1understanding oftheproblems which thetarget population -
andfamilies encounter inthefield ofexisting provisions andservices
whose intended purpose istoguarantee their rights ^to'offer them help
\orpossibilities forimproving their situation
and should betested inthe 9Member States ofthe Community .
For (ii)one oftheobjectives oftheproject combatting the effects ofpoverty
'upon chiIdren from deprived families inthe ^14th arrondissement ofParis is
-toensure abetter coordination between services concerned with implementing po-
«
licies infavour ofchildren . - ■
Theproject concerned with the "Improvement ofsocial assistance services "
.inPadua (Italy )i£anattempt at.ending the confusion reigning intheexisting
social assistance scheme ,atdiscontinuing thespecial services forpredeter -
minated groups ofpeople ,atavoiding delays arising from thecomplexity of ,
•bureaucratic formalities and thewaste ofresources caused bytheoverlap of.
•-work done bydifferent organisations .
Theproject of"Comprehensive action tocombat exclusion oftheFourth World "
inReims (France )has asitsmain objective theconcertation ofallrelevant bo-
-dies atthelocal level toenable them toan'alyse their present methods ofwork
and toformulate new methods ofintervention .. -
Tosumup,inthe .three ^schemes being undertaken atpresent andmentioned -
bywayofillustration anattempt isbeing made toimprove thecoordination
andfunctioning ofthesocial services putting anend tothejuxtaposition
which exists between different bodies .Such anaction isinthe interests of
■thepopulation asawhole,and inparticular ofthemost disadvantaged .The
results ofthese projects should betested inthenineMember States . |
For (iii)itismore andmore evident that social security andsocial I
assistance ,which were conceived tohelp disadvantaged groups ,areeither (
notreaching anyonnotenough oftheir target populations .Several projects ;
have been investigating thefactors responsible forthis phenomena .Itwould be !
desirable toexamine the importance ofthese factors inthenine Member States . ;
Λ

-7-
Proposalfora
cCOUNCILDECISION
concerning aninterim programmetocombatpoverty
TheCounciloftheEuropeanCommunities,
HavingregardtotheTreatyestablishing theEuropeanEconomicCommunity,
andinparticularArticle235thereof; ■--'
HavingregardtotheproposalfromtheCommission;
HavingregardtotheopinionoftheEuropeanParliament (1);
«
HavingregardtotheopinionoftheEconomicandSocialCommittee (2)
/
WhereasinitsDecision75/458/EECof22July1975concerning aprogrammeof
pilotschemesandstudiestocombatpoverty(3),asamendedbyDecision
77/779/EEC(4),theCouncilempoweredtheCommissiontopromoteorprovide -
financialassistanceforpilotschemeswhichtestanddevelopnewmethodsofhel­
pingpersonsbesetbyorthreatened withpovertyintheCommunity,andtopromote,
carryoutorprovidefinancialassistanceforpilotstudiestoimproveunderstanding
ofthenature,causes,scopeandmechanicsofpovertyintheCommunity,withinthe
limitsoftherelevantappropriations enteredinthebudgetsoftheCommunities
for1975,1976,1977,1978and1979;
(1)
(2)
(3)L199,30.7.1975,p.34.
(4)L322,17.12.1977,p.28.

•-8- . »-
J» . _• •
Whereas theCommission hasestablished aprogramme consisting of :
-.29pilot schemes andstudies
.thepreparation ofanevaluation report fortheprogramme
.thepreparation of8national reports onpoverty andmeasures taken to
combat itintheMember States oftheCommunity ; - _ '
Whereas ,inaccordance with Article 6oftheaforementioned Decision ,the
Commission hassubmitted tothe Council andtheEuropean Parliament a
second report onthesatisfactory progress ofthe-activities inthis field ;
Whereas ,inaccordance with the aforesaid Article 6-the Commission will submit
upon completion oftheprogramme orby30June 1981 atthe latest ,afinal
report including anevaluation oftheresults obtained ;
Whereas ifaprogramme ofpilot s'chemes andstudies tocombat ,poverty isnot
financed beyond thebudget for ""1979 ,'the Community action inthis field cannot
beconsidered complete ^aspoverty remains amajor preoccupation inall ,the
Member States ; .
•t •• ,
Whereas inthese circumstances itisdesirable tolaunch aninterim programme
based onaprovisional analysis ofthepresent programme ,concentrating upon a
small number ofaspects where-there isastrong possibility ofmaking some
progress , .. - ' -■ f • . '
HAS DECIDED AS-FOLLOWS :
« , ., \ v
'• . y '
Art icle 1 • " ' '– .4 -
Within thelimits oftheappropriations' which areauthorised bythe
budgetary authority ,theCommission maypromote ,finance orundertake
projects orstudies related tocertain aspects identified under the
«
programme tocombat poverty Pursuant toDecision 75M58 /EFC »"><■( wh.ich
aresuitable forexamination inareater deDth .

9-
Article 2
Communityfinancialassistance maynotexceed50%oftheamountoftheestimated
cost,providedthatthisamounthasbeenactuallyreached.
However,forpilotstudies,financialassistance mayexceed50%oftheamountofthe
estimatedcost,providedthatthisamounthasbeenactuallyreached,ifthepilot
studyinquestionisofexceptional importancefortheCommunityasawholeand
I-istobecarriedoutontheterritoryofmorethanoneMemberState.•
/
Article3
1.PilotschemesandstudiesforwhichCommunityfinancialassistance hasbeen
requestedshallbe'forwardedtotheCommission bytheMemberStateonwhose
territorythepilotschemeorstudyistobecarriedout.
2.TheCommission shallinformtheMemberStateconcernedofitsdecisionto
grantorrefusethefinancialassistance requested.
3.Bothpublicandprivatebodiesshallbeeligibleforfinancialassistance .
Article 4
TheCommissionshallobtaintheagreementoftheMemberStateorStatesonwhose
territorythepilotschemeorstudyistobecarriedout.
Article 5
1.TheCommissionshallconsulttherepresentatives oftheGovernments ofthe
MemberStatesand.independent expertsonallmattersofimportance concerning
theoperationofthisDecision.
>
V
2.TheCommissionshallarrangeforthebodyresponsible forthepilotscheme
orstudytoreportbacktoitatregularintervals ontheprogressofthe.
schemeorstudyandtogiveitanyotherinformation theCommission considers
» *
appropriate .
- r „/.*
♦
>

-10-
Article 6
In1983 theCommission shall submit areport tothe Council andtheEuropean
Parliament ontheavailable results ofoperations carried outwith financial
assistance from the Community . .
■X
Article 7
This Decision shall enter into force onthe fifth day following its -
publication intheOfficial Journal oftheEuropean Communities . _ '
Itshall apply .tooperations forwhich the Commission hasdecided forthe first
time before 1December 1980 togrant financial assistance .
Done atBrussels , .1979
For the Counci I"
The President

FffiAîTCrAL FICHE
Intervention Credits
m
1.Appropriate lineinthe"budget:3060
2.Titleofthelineinthe"budget:Pilotschemesandstudiestocombatpoverty.
3.LegalBasis
On22July1975"theCouncilapprovedDecision75/458/EECconcerningaprogramme
ofpilotschemesandstudiestocombatpoverty.
Lateron12December1977"theCouncilapprovedDecision"77/779/SEGamending
Decision75/458/EECconsideringitdesirablethatschemesstillinprogress
-aswellasasmallnumberofnewschemescontinueto"beassisted "bythe
Communitywithinthelimitsoftherelevantappropriation enteredinthe
"jmclgetoftheCommunitiesfor1977»1978and1979*
TheDecisionof12December1977providesthattheCommissionshallsubmit
afinalreportontheavailableresultsofoperations-assoontheprogramme
iscompletedandnotlaterthan30June1981'.
Giventhatthisreportwillbasedupon:
-afinalreportoneachprojeoti
-anevaluationreportontheprogrammeofpilotschemesandstudiesasawhole;
-aseriesofnationalreportsonpovertyandmeasurestakentocombatitin
theMemberStatesofiheCommunity
andgiventheimportanceoftheproblemitisunlikelythattheCouncilwill
beabletodrawupitsconclusionsbeforethebeginningof1982.
Inordertospantheperiodbetweentheendoftheprogramme,1DecemberI98O(*),
andtheapplicationoftheCouncil*sconclusions,forwhichtheearliestdate
willbethesecondhalfof1982,theCommissionisnowsubmittinga..newdraft
Councildecisiondefiningproposalsfortheinterimperiodforthepurpose
.ofcontinuingresearchandactiontocombatpoverty.
(*)Distinctionmustbemadebetweenthecommitmentofthebudget,whichmust
becarriedoutbefore1December1979an&theendoftheprogrammewhich
isnotuntil1DecemberI98O. ~

-12-
?
4*Description ,objectives and ,.justification oftheaction
4.0.Description oftheaction /target population :
4»00»Description
Although theprogramme ofpilot schemes and studies tocombat poverty >
will notbefunded beyond the1979 Budget (Post 3060 ),Community
action tocombat poverty cannot beconsidered ascomplete given
that thesubject remains amajor preoccupation inall theMember
States aswell asallthecountries oftheworld .Itisytherefore ,
proposed touse the results gathered from theprogramme ofpilot
schemes and studies asawhole toconcentrate efforts onasmall
number offields oraspects where there isa.strong possibility of
improving -t*16situation during aninterim period ,whilst awaiting
thefinal report pnthewhole programme ,including thenational
reports .(Seepoint 3above ).These aspects will bebrought together
inone orseveral schemes orstudies ineach Member State and these
projects will bebased oninformation gleaned from earlier pilot
schemes and studies undertaken inall theMember States .
Given that theprogramme ofpilot sohemes andstudies will only end
on1December I98O itisnotyetpossible tospecify thefields
ofaction fortheinterim period .
t
4*01.Ikrget population
4.01.0 .Types :
Those persons whose resources are sosmall astoexclude
them from thenormal way oflife .Theactual categories
will depend upon theaotual shape which theproject or
projects take ,forexample they could focus onsuch aspects
ofpoverty as :
-theuseofpoverty indicators ,which have emerged from
thepilot schemes andstudies ,toindicate areas orpersons
inneed ofspecial assistance ,
--theadministrative integration ofsocial insurance and
social assistance services atthe local level ,
-aserious study ofthereasons whysocial aiddoes not
always reach thetarget population .

13~
4.Q1.I.NumberJIndefinite.
4*01.2.Geographical location:all.theMemberStatesoftheCommunity.'
4,1.Objectivesoftheaction
Theobjectivesaretobringthegoalsoftheoriginalprogrammeinto
amoredefiniteandadvancedphase,selectingcertainareaswhere
thereisastrongpossibility ofremedyingthesituation,basedon
information drawnfromthefirstprogramme.
4.2.Justification oftheactionchosentoattaintheobjectives
Themainjustification canbefbundinthefactthatpovertyinthei
Communityhasnotdiminished'toanygreatextentanditmayeven,
haveincreasedsincethefirstprogrammetocombatpovertywas i
launched.TheEuropeanParliamenthasallreadyvoiceditspolitical
preoccupations inthismatterbyproposingannualCommunityaid
inordertoensurethecontinuation ofresearchtocombatpoverty
andtopromoteactionsbasedontheresultsofsuohschemes.
Itisevidentthattheseinquiriesconstituteapriorityactionfor
theCommissioncontributing inasignificant mannertoanintez*-
penetration betweenCommunityworkandworkundertakeninthe
MemberStatesandaddingaCommunitydimensiontosuchwoi&.
* * 4
5.Appropriations I
■- , '
5.1.Patternofexpenditure !
Engagementcredits
'1980:+oOO.OOOe.u.a.(subsistingcreditsfrom1979)!
4000000'e.u.a.(creditsrequestedinthedraft
budgetforI98O)
I98I:'-*.200.000e.u.a.(atcurrentprices)
9000000e.u.a.
Thepatternof.spendingwillbedeterminedbycontractual
arrangements in1980andI98I. ~
Paymentcredits ,
PaymentswilL.bemadeapproximatively asfollows:
Engagements -] Payments
,Soo.000..19S0i^.0C0.CCC>*)
1981 -
9ococe:7*[1930j1981.1952
I
IScc.cco
1.600.000'2.400.000
1.800.occ2A00000
("■)Creditsrerriciningfrcm"iv

5.2 .Wethod ofcalculation -
Cost ofjtheprojects intheprogramme fortheperiod 1978-79 (2budgetary
exercises ):
.8.5MEUA for29operations ,that istosayanaverage of
0.29 MEUA peroperation .
Average estimated cost for theprojects during theperiod 1980-1981
(2budgetary exercises ):
0.30 MEUA x30operations =9MEUE made upasindicated .intheafore­
mentioned 5.1 .
i.Srsten ofcontrol envisa.^ed : '• -
6.0.Theimplementation ofeach scheme andstudy will "be "based onacontract inwhich
provision will bemade foronthespot audits (individual files ,book3 andother
accounting documents ), ♦ .
6.1.Theprogress oftheschemes andstudies will "besubject toregular reports .At
the same tine theCommission will setupappropriate systems toevaluate th9
results oftheschemes andstudies after consulting -relevant bodies®
6.2.Government representatives andexperts inother fields will beconsulted onall
important matters raised bytheimplementation oftheprogramme especially
relative totheevaluation oftheresults oftheschemes ,research ,themes for
cooperation andcoordination between therelevant bodies inthepublic and
private sectors .
•Implications for staffing
Given that theproposal isforaninterim programme (ofapproximately 2years duration )
andthat thefinal decision concerning thecontinuation ordiscontinuation ofthe
programme will betaken attheendof198l/beginning of19^2 ,itisnotproposed to
recruit newpersonnel forthework .Thenumbers ofpersons engaged ontheprogramme
is,however ,entirely insufficient (lA.5 1B.3 *"oraprogramme ofapproximately
30schemes andstudies ,including thenational reports intheNine Member States and
amounting to20million e.u.a .(ofCommunity funding )or35million e.u.a .(Community
andnational funding )^