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BackCurrently, about 5.6 million young Europeans are unemployed. The EU wanted to provide help swiftly and agreed on a Youth Guarantee based on which in future every unemployed young person should be provided with a job, an apprenticeship or at least work experience within four months at the latest. Since 2013, six billion euros have been available for Europe’s youth. However, the majority of this money has yet to be collected. The problem: anybody wanting subsidies must first agree with the EU Commission on a programme of measures. So far, this has only been achieved in France.
EU funds for Youth Guarantee must be made available with less red tape
However, whose fault is it that the urgently required money, which has been promised, is simply not collected from Brussels? Certainly, the blame does not only lie with Brussels’ bureaucracy. According to well-informed sources, there was simply also a lack of ideas in the EU states as to how to create jobs. However, it is not the case that the Member States have been completely idle until now. In the meantime, all of them have submitted national plans for implementing the Youth Guarantee, on which the EU countries had agreed in spring 2013. Spain for example plans among other to improve the advice given to and the placements provided for young people; to achieve this she has increased the level of staff in her job centres. The government in Greece intends to use funds from the Youth Employment Initiative to provide assistance for 240,000 young people. 22 billion euros alone shall flow into the subsidisation of 20,000 apprenticeships. However, the fundamental problem remains. Similar to the funds from the EU Structural Funds, the six billion euros allocated to the fight against youth unemployment are subject to strict conditions. Funds from the Youth Employment Initiative can only be accessed by preparing and officially submitting an operational programme, which has to be officially approved. France has reached such an agreement with Brussels a few days ago - the only EU country so far.
Approval procedures to be made easier
Hence, it has now been requested to simplify approval procedures to make collecting funds from Brussels easier and less complicated. However, there is no interest in easing one condition to receive the subsidy - so-called co-financing, which means that recipient countries have to contribute a certain part of the funds for subsidy programmes themselves. This is in aid of preventing funds being accessed for nonsensical measures. In relation with co-financing, Italy demands that expenses for fighting youth unemployment should be regarded as investment and that these should not be part of the national deficit. A good idea, which, however, is firmly rejected by Germany. However, one thing is for sure - something has to happen as the almost 6 million young people have already been waiting for help for far too long.
Further information:
Press release by the EU Commission on the Youth Guarantee in France
However, whose fault is it that the urgently required money, which has been promised, is simply not collected from Brussels? Certainly, the blame does not only lie with Brussels’ bureaucracy. According to well-informed sources, there was simply also a lack of ideas in the EU states as to how to create jobs. However, it is not the case that the Member States have been completely idle until now. In the meantime, all of them have submitted national plans for implementing the Youth Guarantee, on which the EU countries had agreed in spring 2013. Spain for example plans among other to improve the advice given to and the placements provided for young people; to achieve this she has increased the level of staff in her job centres. The government in Greece intends to use funds from the Youth Employment Initiative to provide assistance for 240,000 young people. 22 billion euros alone shall flow into the subsidisation of 20,000 apprenticeships. However, the fundamental problem remains. Similar to the funds from the EU Structural Funds, the six billion euros allocated to the fight against youth unemployment are subject to strict conditions. Funds from the Youth Employment Initiative can only be accessed by preparing and officially submitting an operational programme, which has to be officially approved. France has reached such an agreement with Brussels a few days ago - the only EU country so far.
Approval procedures to be made easier
Hence, it has now been requested to simplify approval procedures to make collecting funds from Brussels easier and less complicated. However, there is no interest in easing one condition to receive the subsidy - so-called co-financing, which means that recipient countries have to contribute a certain part of the funds for subsidy programmes themselves. This is in aid of preventing funds being accessed for nonsensical measures. In relation with co-financing, Italy demands that expenses for fighting youth unemployment should be regarded as investment and that these should not be part of the national deficit. A good idea, which, however, is firmly rejected by Germany. However, one thing is for sure - something has to happen as the almost 6 million young people have already been waiting for help for far too long.
Further information:
Press release by the EU Commission on the Youth Guarantee in France