Proposal for a DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on the European Year for Active Ageing (2012)
Date: 2010-09-06
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: demography, economic consequence, labour market, occupational health, pension scheme, population ageing, report, vocational training

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 6.9.2010 
COM(2010) 462 final 

2010/0242 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on the European Year for Active Ageing (2012) 

(text with EEA relevance) 

SEC(2010) 1002 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

The European Union is in a process of significant population ageing, as was stressed by the 
Commission  in  2008  in  its  2nd  Demography  Report  on  "Meeting  social  needs  in  an  ageing 
society". According to Eurostat's latest projections released in 2008, there would be only two 
people of working age (15-64) for every person aged over 65 in the European Union by 2060 
compared to a ratio of four to one today. The strongest push in this direction is expected to 
occur during the period 2015-35 when the baby boom cohorts will be in retirement. This shift 
is due to a combination of low birth rates and rising life expectancy. Indeed Europeans today 
are living longer and healthier lives than ever before. Since 1960, life expectancy has risen by 
eight  years,  and  demographic  projections  forecast  a  further  five-year  increase  over  the  next 
forty years. This is a historic achievement that deserves to be celebrated. 

The  EU  population  pyramid  clearly  shows  an  increase  in  cohort  size  just  after  the  end  of 
World  War  II,  marking  the  start  of  the  baby  boom.  From  2012  the  European  working-age 
population  will  start  to  shrink,  while  the  population  aged  over  60  years  will  continue  to 
increase by about two million people a year, according to a scenario that takes into account 
likely increases in immigration and birth rates1. 

These  demographic  changes  present  both  challenges  and  opportunities.  Population  ageing 
may  increase  pressure  on  public  budgets  and  pension  systems,  as  well  as  on  the  staffing  of 
social  and  care  services  for  older  people.  Old  age  is  still  often  associated  with  illness  and 
dependency, and older people can feel excluded from employment as well as from family and 
community life. There is a fear that the older generations might become too heavy a burden 
on younger, working-age people and that this could result in tensions between generations. 

This  view  neglects,  however,  the  significant  actual  and  potential  contribution  that  older 
people — and the baby-boom cohorts in particular — can make to society. A key opportunity 
for tackling the challenge of demographic ageing and preserving intergenerational solidarity 
consists therefore in ensuring that the baby-boom cohorts stay longer in the labour market and 
remain healthy, active and autonomous as long as possible.  

In  the  framework  of  the  Employment  Strategy,  Member  States  have  started  to  reverse  the 
trend  to  early  retirement  so  that  the  EU-27  employment  rate  for  people  aged  55-64  has 
increased  from  36.9%  in  2000  to  46%  in  2009.  Encouraging  older  workers  to  stay  in 
employment requires notably the improvement of working conditions and their adaptation to 
the health status and needs of older workers, updating their skills by providing better access to 
life long learning and the review of tax and benefit systems to ensure that there are effective 
incentives for working longer. 

Active ageing is also an effective tool for tackling poverty in old age. In 2008, 19% of people 
aged  65+  in  the  European  Union  were  at  risk  of  poverty.  A  considerable  number  of  older 
people  experience  old  age  as  a  time  of  marginalisation.  While  better  employment 
opportunities for older people could help tackle some of the causes of poverty among this age 
group, active participation in voluntary activities could  reduce  the isolation of older people. 

1 

2nd European Demography Report: Meeting Social Needs in an Ageing Society. SEC (2008) 2911 

http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?langId=en&catId=502&newsId=419&furtherNews=yes. 

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The  huge  potential  that  older  persons  represent  for  society  as  volunteers  or  carers  could  be 
better mobilised by eliminating existing obstacles to unpaid work and by providing the right 
framework. 

The  Commission  Communication  on  "Europe  2020  –  A  strategy  for  smart,  sustainable  and 
inclusive  growth"  sets  out  ways  to  exit  the  crisis  and  prepare  the  EU  economy  for  the  next 
decade.  In  the  context  of  inclusive  growth,  the  Commission  highlights  the  importance  of 
promoting a healthy and active ageing population to help, among other things, achieve high-
employment, invest in skills and reduce poverty. 

The proposed European Year for Active Ageing would encourage and support the efforts of 
Member  States,  their  regional  and  local  authorities,  social  partners  and  civil  society  to 
promote active ageing and do more to mobilise the potential of the baby boom cohorts. 

It  should  be  seen  as  the  highlight  of  a  major  effort  spanning  the  period  2011-2014,  during 
which the EU would focus many of its programmes and policies on the issue of active ageing 
and  put  in  place  a  framework  in  which  new  initiatives  and  partnerships  supporting  active 
ageing  at  all  levels  (Member  State,  regional,  local,  social  partners,  civil  society)  can  be 
encouraged and publicised.  

In 2011, public authorities, social partners and civil society organisations at all levels would 
be  encouraged  to  commit  themselves  to  specific  goals  related  to  active  ageing;  the  focus 
would be on achievements during the European Year. The goals would be documented on a 
European  website  which  would  then  become  the  website  for  the  European  Year  and  would 
also serve as a tool for monitoring and evaluation.  

In 2012, the focus of the European Year would be on starting to implement the commitments 
made  during  2011,  on  raising  awareness  among  the  general  public,  publicising  these 
initiatives through media activities and the involvement of other multipliers. Results of active 
ageing projects funded under existing budget lines and programmes would be presented. 

2. 

RESULTS OF CONSULTATIONS WITH THE INTERESTED PARTIES AND 
EXPECTED IMPACT 

2.1. 

Consultations 

Having  committed  itself  to  an  inclusive  approach  in  developing  and  implementing  EU 
policies, the Commission asked for the views of stakeholders on the theme of active ageing 
and intergenerational solidarity, and on the form a possible European Year might take, with a 
view to obtaining input for its formal proposal, enhancing transparency and promoting early 
coordination. 

Early  consultation  was  in  the  form  of  an  online  questionnaire  which  gave  Member  States, 
social partners, NGOs and other interested parties and experts the opportunity to express their 
views. It was available on the web page ‘Your Voice in Europe’, the European Commission’s 
single access point to a wide variety of consultations, for over two months. The questionnaire 
focused  on  the  following  themes:  threats  and  opportunities  of  ageing  in  relation  to 
intergenerational  solidarity,  recommended  policy  measures,  the  specific  role  of  the  EU  in 
promoting  the  right  policy  responses,  topics  and  activities  for  a  European  Year,  and  the 
involvement of stakeholders. 

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Contributors were generally in favour of a European Year on the theme of active ageing. They 
welcomed  the  awareness-raising  aspect,  placing  key  themes  more  firmly  on  political  and 
public  policy  agendas.  They  also  thought  it  would  give  recognition  and  support  to  people 
already working on these topics, support the sharing of good practice, and generate innovative 
approaches and new synergies between existing players. Respondents also wanted a European 
Year to leave a long-term legacy, in part by generating long-lasting initiatives. Respondents of 
all  types  (civil  society  organisations,  public  authorities,  social  partners,  etc)  showed  a  great 
willingness  to  be  involved  in  a  European  Year,  indicating  activities  they  were  planning  to 
hold which could feed into such a year, and proposing additional projects. 

2.2. 

Expected Impact 

Policy  responses  on  active  ageing  generally  fall  within  the  responsibility  of  the  Member 
States, which are stepping up their efforts to mobilise the potential of older people. However, 
responses received from Member States' national authorities were overwhelmingly supportive 
of the idea of action at Union level and, in particular, of a European Year. They felt that the 
European Union could support their endeavours by creating a more supportive environment, 
with  increased  awareness  among  policy  makers  and  the  general  public,  helping  to  mobilise 
policy  makers  and  stakeholders  at  all  levels,  supporting  mutual  learning  across  Europe, 
monitoring progress, and helping to define common objectives and targets. 

Current activities at EU level do not seem properly geared to dealing with what needs to be 
done: (1) raise awareness among the general public, policy makers and other stakeholders of 
the importance  of  active  ageing and of the  need to  do  more  to  mobilise  the  potential  of  the 
baby boom cohorts; (2) foster an exchange of information and experience between Member 
States and stakeholders; (3) give Member States and stakeholders an opportunity to develop 
policies by way of specific activities and by committing to specific objectives. 

Broad-based  support  will  be  required  at  all  levels  of  society  and  from  a  wide  range  of 
stakeholders.  The  key  challenge  is  to  mobilise  stakeholders  in  a  way  that  will  generate 
significant action at national, regional, local and company levels across the EU. With greater 
political momentum and visibility for active ageing policies, policy makers can be encouraged 
to take more ambitious initiatives. 

In a European Year with activities coordinated at EU level, the Commission would be able to 
ensure  that  specific  European  Year  activities  are  consistent  with  other  EU  initiatives  and 
programmes.  

3. 

LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL 

Article 151 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union says that the Union and 
the  Member  States  shall  have  as  their  objectives  'the  promotion  of  employment,  improved 
living  and  working  conditions,  so  as  to  make  possible  their  harmonisation  while  the 
improvement  is  being  maintained,  proper  social  protection,  dialogue  between  management 
and labour, the development of human resources with a view to lasting high employment and 
the combating of exclusion.' In order to achieve these objectives, the Union shall support and 
complement the activities of the Member States regarding working conditions, the integration 
of  persons  excluded  from  the  labour  market  and  the  combating  of  social  exclusion  (Article 
153(1) of the TfEU). 

The  objectives  enumerated  in  Article  151  underpin  the  proposal  for  a  Decision  on  the 
European  Year  for  Active  Ageing  (2012),  which  aims  at  encouraging  and  supporting  the 

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efforts  of  the  Member  States,  their  regional  and  local  authorities,  social  partners  and  civil 
society to promote active ageing. 

The  main  purpose  of  the  proposal  falls  within  the  ambit  of  Article  153(1),  as  the  proposal 
aims at raising general awareness, stimulating a debate and mutual learning between Member 
States  and  stakeholders  in  order  to  promote  better  opportunities  and  working  conditions  for 
the participation of older workers in the labour market and to combat social exclusion.  

The  primary  intention  is  to  promote  active  ageing  in  employment  by  creating  better 
opportunities for the participation of older workers, and to promote active ageing in society, 
by  combating  social  exclusion  through  voluntary  work,  healthy  ageing  and  autonomous 
living. 

The proposal for a Decision consequently finds its legal basis in Article 153(2) of the Treaty 
on the Functioning of the European Union. 

The proposal for a Decision is in conformity with the principle of subsidiarity as provided for 
in  Article  5  of  the  Treaty  on  European  Union,  as  the  objectives  of  the  proposed  European 
Year  cannot  be  fully  achieved  at  Member  State  level  due  to  the  need  for  trans-national 
exchange of information and the EU-wide dissemination of good practice, and can therefore, 
by reason of the scale of the proposed action, be better achieved at EU level. 

4. 

BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS 

No  additional  funding  is  sought  for  the  European  Year.  The  flexibility  for  annual  or 
multiannual  priority-setting  based  on  the  budget  lines  and  programmes  of  the  Directorate 
General for Employment and other relevant programmes provides sufficient financial margin 
for  running  the  Year  on  a  scale  similar  to  previous  European  Years.  The  administrative 
resources can also come from existing administrative budgets. 

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2010/0242 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on the European Year for Active Ageing (2012) 

(text with EEA relevance) 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 153(2) 
thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national Parliaments, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee2, 

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions3, 

Acting in accordance with ordinary legislative procedure, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

Pursuant to Article 147 of the Treaty, the Union shall contribute to a high level of employment 
by  encouraging  cooperation  between  Member  States  and  by  supporting  and,  if  necessary, 
complementing their action. 

Pursuant to Article 153(1) of the Treaty, the Union shall support and complement the activities 
of  the  Member  States  on  working  conditions,  the  integration  of  persons  excluded  from  the 
labour market, and the combating of social exclusion. 

Pursuant to Article 25 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, the Union recognises and respects 
the rights of the elderly to lead a life of dignity and independence and to participate in social 
and cultural life. 

Successive  European  Councils  have  recognised  the  need  to  tackle  the  effect  of  ageing 
populations on European social models. A key response to this rapid change in the age structure 
consists in promoting active ageing and thus ensuring that the baby boom cohorts, who are, on 
the  whole,  healthier  and  better  educated  than  any  such  cohort  before  them,  have  good 
opportunities for employment and active participation in society. 

2 

3 

OJ C […], […], p. […]. 

OJ C […], […], p. […]. 

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(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

The  growing  proportion  of  older  people  in  Europe  makes  it  more  important  than  ever  to 
promote  healthy  ageing.  Healthy  ageing  can  help  raise  labour  market  participation  of  older 
people, enable them to be active in society for longer, improve their individual quality of life 
and curb the strains on health and social care systems. 

The  Commission  presented  its  views  on  the  demographic  challenges  the  EU  faces  and  on 
opportunities for tackling them in its communications on ‘The demographic future of Europe —
from  challenge  to  opportunity’  of  12  October  2006  and  on  ‘Dealing  with  the  impact  of  an 
ageing population in the European Union’ of 21 April 2009. 

The  Council  adopted  on  22  February  2007  a  resolution  on  ‘Opportunities  and  challenges  of 
demographic  change  in  Europe:  the  contribution  of  older  people  to  economic  and  social 
development’, which emphasised the need to increase the possibilities of active participation by 
older  people,  the  new  economic  opportunities  ("silver  economy")  created  by  the  growing 
demand of older people for certain goods and services as well as the importance of a positive 
public image of older people. 

The Council adopted on 8 June 2009 Conclusions on ‘Equal opportunities for women and men: 
active and dignified ageing’, which recognises that, throughout the EU, older women and men 
face serious challenges as they seek to live active lives and to age with dignity, and proposes a 
number of measures to Member States and the Commission.  

The  Council  adopted  on  20  November  2009  Conclusions  on  ‘Healthy  and  dignified  ageing’, 
inviting  the  Commission,  inter  alia,  ‘to  develop  awareness-raising  activities  to  promote  active 
ageing, including a possible European Year on Active Ageing and Intergenerational Solidarity 
in 2012’. 

(10)  The  Commission  emphasised  it  its  Communication  on  ‘Europe  2020  —  A  strategy  for  smart, 
sustainable and inclusive growth’ the importance to the European Union of promoting a healthy 
and  active  ageing  population  in  the  interests  of  social  cohesion  and  higher  productivity.  It 
proposed a flagship initiative ‘An agenda for new skills and jobs’, under which Member States 
should notably promote active ageing policies, and a flagship initiative on a ‘European Platform 
against  Poverty’.  Achieving  these  policy  goals  requires  action  from  all  levels  of  government 
and various non-governmental stakeholders; they can in turn be supported, at the Union level, 
by  European  Year  activities  aimed  at  raising  awareness  and  fostering  the  exchange  of  good 
practice.  National  coordinators  should  see  to  it  that  national  action  is  coordinated  and  is 
consistent  with  the  overall  objectives  of  the  European  Year.  The  participation  of  other 
institutions and stakeholders is also planned.  

(11)  The Council adopted on 7 June 2010 Conclusions on ‘Active Ageing’, inviting the Commission 
‘to  pursue  the  preparation  of  a  European  Year  for  Active  Ageing  in  2012  during  which  the 
benefits  of  active  ageing  and  its  contribution  to  solidarity  between  generations  can  be 
highlighted and promising initiatives in support of active ageing at all levels can be publicised’. 

(12)  The  Commission  proposed  in  its  proposal  for  a  Council  Decision  on  "Guidelines  for  the 
employment policies of the Member States" of 27 April 2010, which calls under the guidelines 
7  and  8  on  Member  States  to  increase  labour  force  participation  through  policies  to  promote 
active  ageing,  to  raise  employment  rates  of  older  workers  through  innovation  in  work 
organisation  and  to  increase  the  employability  of  older  workers  through  up-skilling  and 
participation in lifelong learning schemes. Guideline 10 emphasises the need to enhance social 

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protection  systems,  lifelong  learning  and  active  inclusion  policies  with  the  aim  to  create 
opportunities  at  different  stages  of  people's  lives  and  shield  them  from  the  risk  of  social 
exclusion. 

(13) 

In  its  Communication  on  "A  Digital  Agenda  for  Europe",  the  first  EU2020  flagship  initiative 
adopted  on  19  May  2010,  the  Commission  stressed  the  importance  of  ICT  for  ageing  well, 
proposing  in  particular  the  reinforcement  of  the  Ambient  Assisted  Living  (AAL)  Joint 
Programme.  The  Digital  Agenda  for  Europe  also  recommended  taking  concerted  action  to 
increase the digital competences of all Europeans, including older persons, a group that is over-
represented within the 150 million citizens, or about 30% of the total, who have never used the 
internet.  

(14)  The  Commission  is  implementing  the  European  Disability  Action  plan  that  contains  relevant 
actions  for  older  persons  given  the  correlation  between  disability  and  ageing.  In  particular 
actions on accessibility following Design for all approaches would be relevant. Furthermore the 
EU  and  all  Member  States  have  signed  the  UN  Convention  on  the  Rights  of  persons  with 
disabilities that contains relevant provisions for older persons. 

(15)  Active ageing is targeted by several Union programmes, such as the European Social Fund, the 
European  Regional  and  Development  Fund,  the  PROGRESS  programme,  the  Life  Long 
Learning  Programme,  the  Public  Health  Programme,  the  specific  programmes  on  information 
and  communication  technologies  and  on  socio-economic  sciences  and  humanities  in  the 
Seventh  Framework  Programme  for  Research  and  Development,  the  Action  Plan  on  ‘Ageing 
well  in  the  information  society’,  the  Ambient  Assisted  Living  (AAL)  Joint  Programme  for 
research and innovation, the Competitiveness and Innovation Programme with pilot deployment 
projects on ICT for Ageing Well and the Action Plan on urban mobility. Union co-financing of 
European  Year  activities  will  be  in  accordance  with  the  priorities  and  rules  applying,  on  an 
annual or multi-annual basis, to existing programmes and autonomous budget lines in the field 
of  employment,  social  affairs  and  equal  opportunities.  Where  appropriate,  programmes  and 
policies in other fields, such as education and culture, health, research, the information society, 
regional policy and transport policy, may support the European Year. 

(16)  The  objectives  of  the  proposed  European  Year for  Active  Ageing  cannot  be  fully  achieved  at 
Member State level due to the need for transnational exchange of information and the Union-
wide dissemination of good practice, and can therefore, by reason of the scale of the proposed 
action, be better achieved at Union level. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as 
set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on the European Union, this Decision does not go beyond what 
is necessary to achieve those objectives. 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DECISION: 

Article 1 
Subject 

The year 2012 shall be designated as the European Year for Active Ageing (hereafter referred to as ‘the 
European Year’). 

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Article 2 
Objectives 

The  overall  purpose  of  the  European  Year  shall  be  to  encourage  and  support  the  efforts  of  Member 
States,  their  regional  and  local  authorities,  social  partners  and  civil  society  to  promote  active  ageing 
and to do more to mobilise the potential of the rapidly growing population in their late 50s and above, 
thereby  preserving  solidarity  between  generations.  Active  ageing  means  creating  better  opportunities 
and  working  conditions  to  enable  older  workers  to  play  their  part  in  the  labour  market,  combating 
social  exclusion  by  fostering  active  participation  in  society,  and  encouraging  healthy  ageing.  On  this 
basis, the objectives shall be: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

to  raise  general  awareness  of  the  value  of  active  ageing  in  order  to  highlight  the  useful 
contribution older persons make to society and the economy, to promote active ageing and to do 
more to mobilise the potential of older persons; 

to stimulate debate and develop mutual learning between Member States and stakeholders at all 
levels in order to promote active ageing policies, to identify and disseminate good practice and 
to encourage cooperation and synergies; 

to  offer  a  framework  for  commitment  and  concrete  action  to  enable  Member  States  and 
stakeholders  at  all  levels  to  develop  policies  through  specific  activities  and  to  commit  to 
specific objectives related to active ageing. 

Article 3 
Content of measures 

1. 

The  measures  to  be  taken  to  achieve  the  objectives  set  out  in  Article  2  shall  include  the 
following activities at Union, national, regional or local level: 

–  conferences,  events  and  initiatives  to  promote  debate,  raise  awareness  and  foster  the 

making of specific commitments; 

–  information, promotion and educational campaigns; 

–  exchange of information, experience and good practices; 

–  research and surveys on a Union or national scale, and dissemination of the results. 

2. 

3. 

The  Commission  or  the  Member  States  may  identify  other  activities  as  contributing  to 
objectives  of  the  European  Year  and  allow  the  name  of  the  European  Year  to  be  used  in 
promoting  those  activities  insofar  as  they  contribute  to  achieving  the  objectives  set  out  in 
Article 2. 

The  Commission  and  the  Member  States  shall  take  account  of  gender  mainstreaming  in  the 
running of the European Year. 

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Article 4 
Coordination with the Member States 

Each Member State shall appoint a national coordinator responsible for organising its involvement in 
the European Year. The national coordinators should also see to it that national activities are properly 
coordinated. 

Article 5 
Coordination at Union level 

The Commission shall convene meetings of the national coordinators for the purpose of coordination at 
Union level and to exchange information, including on commitments made and their implementation in 
the Member States. 

Coordination  at  Union  level  shall  also  be  a  matter  for  the  existing  policy  committees  and  advisory 
groups. 

The  Commission  shall  also  convene  meetings  of  representatives  of  European  organisations  or  bodies 
working in the field of active ageing to help it run the European Year. 

The European Parliament, the Member States, the European Economic and Social Committee and the 
Committee of the Regions will be associated in the activities. 

Article 6 
Consistency and complementarity 

The Commission — together with the Member States — shall ensure that the measures provided for in 
this  Decision  are  consistent  with  any  other  Union,  national  and  regional  schemes  and  initiatives  that 
help attain the objectives of the European Year. 

Article 7 
Evaluation 

By 30 June 2014, the Commission shall submit a report to the European Parliament, the Council, the 
European  Economic  and  Social  Committee  and  the  European  Committee  of  the  Regions  on  the 
implementation, results and overall assessment of the initiatives provided for in this Decision. 

Article 8 
Entry into force 

This Decision shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Journal 
of the European Union. 

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Article 9 

This Decision is addressed to the Member States. 

Done at …, 

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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