Four key issues emerged from the discussions at the seminar as crucial in developing effective minimum income schemes.  These are: defining adequacy and regular uprating of payments, ensuring coverage, addressing non-take-up and integrating minimum income into an active inclusion approach.  Building consensus to make progress on these four areas is crucial to the work of the EMIN project.

Drawing conclusions from the seminar, Hugh Frazer Adjunct Professor, National University of Ireland said: “The amount of resources required to establish adequate minimum income schemes is, in the totality of things, quite small.  However, it is also clear from what people have said at this seminar that what the EMIN is about is also not a small thing – it is a very big thing.  It is about building a fairer, more inclusive, less unequal Europe which guarantees decent and dignified social standards for all.  Adequate minimum income schemes are an important step in achieving such a vision and if we do not achieve this vision I fear that we will not much longer have a social Europe and indeed a European Union at all.”

Access the full report of the seminar here