09-10-2025

The European Federation for Family Employment & Homecare and 51 prominent European networks have co-signed the Joint Statement “100 billion Euros for social spending? The devil’s in the details”. The statement comes amid ongoing negotiations on the EU’s Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2028–2034.

In July 2025, the European Commission published its proposal for the future MFF. The proposal introduces technical improvements, such as harmonised regulations, simplified monitoring, and increased flexibility. These specific provisions have the potential to increase the effectiveness of the next EU Budget, but also entail some risks.

A significant development is the proposal to create National and Regional Partnership (NRP) Plans, which will merge different funding, including the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+), European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), migration, integration and border management, and Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), under single national frameworks. The Plans are established under theNRPP Regulation, which also includes EU Facility and Interreg funds for crisis response and transnational cooperation.

EFFE, together with European partners, has assessed the European Commission’s proposal based on the previously highlighted eight key success factors for a future ESF+. Partners in the coalition represent social services, civil society organisations, trade unions, education and lifelong learning providers, and the social economy.

The assessment highlights serious concerns about the ability of the current EU Budget proposal to deliver on its social ambitions and the achievement of the European Pillar of Social Rights, , outlining key shortcomings such as:

• The loss of a dedicated ESF+ budget line, replaced by a 14% “social spending” target spread across multiple funds, which would mean less guaranteed funding spread across more investment areas;
• A shift toward centralised national planning, weakening regional participation and civil society involvement;
• The elimination of minimum earmarks for social inclusion, child poverty, and material deprivation; which means no more guarantees for investment into initiatives for excluded or disadvantaged groups;
• The removal of enabling conditions, which previously ensured that Member States had effective strategies and safeguards in place before EU money was spent, now leaving investments less accountable and potentially less effective.

The coalition calls for stronger safeguards, dedicated social funding, and empowered local actors to ensure the EU’s social ambitions translate into real impact on the ground.