Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou has held separate meetings with the Dutch Minister of Housing and Spatial Planning, Mona Keijzer, and the French Minister of Housing, Valérie Létard to discuss solutions to the affordable housing issue.
He met with them on 29 September, on the sidelines of the High-Level Conference on Affordable Housing, organized within the framework of the Danish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, in Copenhagen.
A press release issued by the Interior Ministry said that during the meeting with the Dutch Minister, they extensively discussed the housing challenge, which is affecting all EU member states in recent years, and referred to the measures being taken at national level.
The two Ministers underlined the need for more drastic measures at EU level, aiming at providing financial and technical support to governments for the development of housing policies.
They welcomed the ongoing process for the completion of the European Affordable Housing Plan, as well as the European Commission’s intention to promote the integration of affordable housing into the 2028-2035 Cohesion Policy.
The Cyprus Minister informed his Dutch counterpart about the priorities that will be promoted during the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the EU, in the first half of 2026, on housing issues. He noted that Cyprus' goal is to lay the foundations during its Presidency so that it can lead to the adoption of a European affordable housing strategy, which will include sustainable housing policies and integrate best practices of member states, the press release said.
During the meeting with the French Minister of Housing, the issues on which the Republic of Cyprus will focus during its Presidency were also on the agenda. Ioannou stressed that Cyprus' priority and objective is to examine in detail the ways of implementing the main pillars of the European Affordable Housing Plan, once it is completed.
Particular reference was made to the obstacles that exist in terms of the implementation of housing policies, mainly in relation to bureaucratic procedures (red tape) and to the important role that state aid rules play in the effort to establish cooperation between the public and the private sector.
Ministers Ioannou and Létard agreed that the housing strategy should take into account the practical aspects of implementation and be adapted to the real needs of the member states.
(Source: CNA)
