I write you to invite you to the seminar:

19 June 2012, 10:00-15:30

Venue: Committee of the Regions

Rue Belliard 99-101, B - 1040 Brussels

Bâtiment XXX, Room TBC

English and French

This thematic seminar is the second of a series of three that AGE is co-organising with the Committee of the Regions to mark the European Year 2012 for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations.  The first seminar on age-friendly labour markets and social protection systems was held on 15 March (thematic publication based on this debate will be soon available).

Today, our purpose is to raise a series of questions about immediate and future impacts of the crisis on older people, and to collect recommendations from invited key stakeholders on how strengthen overall social inclusion of older people and facilitate their active participation in society. We would like in particular to formulate together with panellist and participants proposals on how better meet needs of the most vulnerable older people in time of crisis and safe their dignity and quality of life. Our debate would also contribute to the broader reflexion we pursue during 2012 on the creation of an age-friendly EU based on more fairness and solidarity among and between the generations.

Our final objective is to use the outcome of the debate to prepare a thematic brochure that can be disseminated as a legacy of the EY2012 to promote change and create a more age-friendly EU by 2020.

You can see a draft agenda here:

Draft Agenda

9.00-10.00:     Registration and welcome coffee/tea

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10:00-10.10:    Welcome - Arnoldas Abramavicius, Chairman of the Committee of the Regions’ Commission for Economic and Social Policy

10:10-10.15:    Introduction by Anne-Sophie Parent, Secretary General, AGE Platform Europe, Moderator

PART ONE: Impact of the crisis on older people and their individual lifestyle behaviour

10.15-12.00 – Panel discussions with:

·         Frédéric Daerden (BE), Member of European Parliament, Rapporteur on the European Platform against poverty and social exclusion (Confirmed)

• Tom De Boeck (BE), Social Protection Expert working on Flemish compulsory care insurance (Confirmed)

·         Egbert Holthuis, DG EMPL, Head of Unit for Social Protection, Social Inclusion Strategy (Confirmed)

·         Researcher from the University of Maastricht, working in specifically on the impact of the crisis on health and LTC care services (TBC)

·         Angela Cluzel (FR), Chair of AGE Health Expert Group (Confirmed)

Panellists will be asked to react and make recommendations with regard to the following issues:

Ø  Impact of the crisis on older people and their individual lifestyle behaviour e.g. renouncing health and long-term care services for financial reasons, choosing between heating and eating, reduced social participation etc.

Ø  Dismantling quality and affordable health and long-term care under budgetary pressure i.e. impact of on-going privatisations of LTC and individualisation of the protection against old-age dependency 

Ø  Promotion, financing and organisation of active and healthy ageing policies to strengthen older people’s participation in society

The purpose of this seminar is to be interactive. Participants will be asked to comment on the answers made by the panellists and to help draw recommendations after each round of questions. A background document will be circulated prior to the meeting with a summary of the points and questions that will be discussed during the debate.

12.00-12.15:    Conclusions from afternoon session by Rapporteur, Božidar Voljc (SI), Vice-Chair of AGE Health Expert Group

12.15-13.15: Lunch break (a light lunch will be served)

PART TWO:    Impact of the crisis on social protection and other old-age related services

13.15-13.25: Introduction by Maciej Kucharczyk, Managing Director, AGE Platform Europe

13.25-15.00 – Panel discussion with:

·         Bérénice Storm (BE), Centre For Social Policy at University of Antwerp (Confirmed)

• Ewa Borowczyk (PL), Minister Counsellor, Polish Permanent Representation to the EU,  Head of Employment and Social Policy Section (Confirmed)
• Armelle Leperre-Desplanques (FR), Head of Department, Alzheimer Cooperative Valuation in Europe, Haute Autorité de Santé (TBC)
• Marian Harkin (IE), Member of European Parliament, Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (TBC)

·         Jean-Pierre Bultez (FR), AGE Vice President and Chair of  Social Inclusion Expert Group (Confirmed)

Panellists will be asked to react and make recommendations with regard to the following issues:

Ø  Impact of the crisis on adequacy of social protection and provision of old-age related services e.g. pensions and minimum income schemes, preventive health and long-term care, quality housing etc. and, consequently, on quality of life and dignity among older people

Ø  Tackling material deprivation among people aged 65 and over, in particular the oldest old and in Member States of the Central and Eastern Europe

Ø  Strengthening overall social cohesion of older people and their place in society in time of budgetary austerity e.g. contribution and involvement in community life, intergenerational transfers image of older people

As for Part one, participants will be asked to comment on the answers made by the panellists and to help draw recommendations after each round of questions. A background document will be circulated prior to the meeting with a summary of the points and questions that will be discussed during the debate.

15:00-15.15:    Conclusions of morning session by Rapporteur, Oldrich Stanek (CS), Vice-Chair of AGE Social Inclusion Expert Group

15.15-15.30:   Concluding remarks, Arnoldas Abramavicius (LT), Committee of the Regions and Marjan Sedmak (SI), AGE President