Signs of old-age

Europe is aging, it’s a fact. If the present trend should continue, by the year 2050 the number of youth aged 0-14 will have decreased by a third (from 100 to 66 million), while persons over 80 will pass from 4 to 11% of the total figure. Changes will have repercussions on family composition, employment, on welfare and pension scheme stability. The European Union has been trying to give priority action to this issue. Strasbourg’s parliament will be addressing the topic once more during the next plenary session (February 18-21), when the report by MEP Françoise Castex on the “Demographic future of Europe” will be presented. EU Population and policies. The French MEP presented the Social Affairs Commission with a series of issues: she mentioned “economic insecurity that undermines stability in Europe”, especially for new generations; she insisted on “helping women conciliate professional and family life” also with Member States, and local bodies’ commitment in the creation of numerous “child-care facilities”. She claimed: “research confirms that couples would like to have more children”. The work prepared in the commission envisaged recent EU interventions, projects and initiatives. In 2005 the Commission published the Green Book on “Confronting the demographic change: a new solidarity between the generations”; the following year the document on “The demographic future of Europe – transforming a challenge into an opportunity” was issued. In the year 2007 the Executive issued “Promoting solidarity between generations”. The European Parliament addressed the topic on different occasions: the last with a resolution of March 2006. Thanks to progress we live longer. The document examined by the Parliament contains a large amount of data by Eurostat and other statistical offices representing an analysis of recent years’ changes along with political proposals. The point of departure is the claim that “demography is the result of three joined factors: birth-rate, life-expectancy, and migration flows”. The first is on the decrease or it is stable in many EU Countries. The other two factors are much more dynamic, in fact in the forthcoming years we will have to consider the “aging European population” whose mean age is expected to pass from 39 in 2004 to 49 in 2050″. These changes “will deeply affect” the age pyramid: the young will decrease in number and senior citizens will increase; working-age population will amount to 331 million in 2010 and then will undergo a constant decrease” until 2050 with 268 million.Birth control and “emancipation”. The text, among other issues, points to the fact that birth-rate decrease and ageing population “are the result of progress; that higher life-expectancy is the consequence of progress in science, hygiene, and standard of living.” There are however ambiguous passages. Further down we read that birth-rate decrease is also to be related to “women’s fertility control” which “is the result of her emancipation and is connected with higher levels of education of young women” and with their participation “in active life and public responsibilities”. The report affirms that this is to be considered “as an irreversible conquest for humanity”. A more fragile economy and a welfare system that ought to be be reviewed. To the changes in the population structure are connected relevant effects. The progressive ageing of Europeans “risks causing a fall in economic dynamism, creativity and innovation and to turn into a reduction of the potential growth” of the GDP of the 27 States. Concerns were expressed over the worsening of regional disparities, regarding States’ response to the demand for individual services, structures for old-age citizens and new health services capable of addressing typical old-age diseases. It will also be necessary to “leave space” for immigrants; approximately 2 million per year will be needed in order “to counter the decrease in working-age population envisaging at the same time effective forms of integration for foreign citizens and for their families. Other measures are requested in the document which, if approved, could mark an important passage for Community and National policies. There are proposals for “appropriate and continual public policies” granting support to maternity; greater investments for early childhood, assistance child-caring facilities and protective devices for the growing number of single mothers”; subsidies and tax-cuts for large families or experiencing difficulties; working contracts envisaging parents’ needs along with the necessities of all those who look after sick people.