05/06/2026 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
The Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development, meeting in Athens on 4 June, expressed concern that overlapping crises are severely undermining food security, food systems and nutrition worldwide. It strongly condemned “the use of famine as a method of warfare”, the unlawful...
10/04/2026 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Saskia Kluit (Netherlands, SOC), PACE rapporteur on “Analysis and guidelines for a sustainable and socially fair energy transition”, made the following statement today: “War in the Middle East is sending shock waves across the energy sector in Europe and worldwide. Large swathes of national...
08/04/2026 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Statement by Joseph O’Reilly (Ireland, EPP/CD), PACE General Rapporteur on the situation of women and children in the Palestinian territories: “As the situation in many parts of the Middle East places more and more civilians, particularly women and children, in an extremely vulnerable situation...
18/03/2026 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Social dumping and labour exploitation, which at its worst includes forced labour and trafficking in human beings, “represents a grave violation of human dignity and fundamental rights,” warns a draft resolution adopted by PACE's Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development...
02/03/2026 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Joseph O’Reilly (Ireland, EPP/CD), PACE General Rapporteur on the situation of women and children in the Palestinian territories, made the following statement today: “The decision by the Israeli government to ban 37 reliable international NGOs – including Oxfam, the Norwegian Refugee Council...
28/01/2026 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Saskia Kluit (Netherlands, SOC), following up on her report “The absolute and urgent need to end the humanitarian crisis for women, children and the hostages in Gaza”, made the following statement today: “Just one year after the adoption of the Assembly resolution based on my report, Palestinians...
09/12/2025 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
The parliamentary conference on the cost-of-living crisis and the role of the European Social Charter took place on Friday, 5 December 2025 at the Assemblée Nationale in Paris. The event was organised by the PACE Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development in cooperation with...
08/12/2025 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
A PACE committee has unanimously said it is against a new draft protocol on the involuntary placement and involuntary treatment of persons in mental healthcare services, pointing out it would “make it more difficult to abolish coercive practices” in such settings. The Assembly must give its...
17/11/2025 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Marking End Child Sexual Abuse Day (18 November), the Chair of PACE’s Social Affairs Committee Saskia Kluit (Netherlands, SOC) and the Chairperson of the Lanzarote Committee Maria José Castello-Branco (Portugal) made the following joint statement: “One in five girls and one in seven boys globally...
21/10/2025 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Lord Michael German (United Kingdom, ALDE), PACE rapporteur on ending the devastating humanitarian catastrophe and the killing of journalists in Gaza, and Saskia Kluit (Netherlands, SOC), PACE rapporteur on ending the humanitarian crisis for women, children and the hostages in Gaza, made the...
25/09/2025 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
The rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on “The absolute and urgent need to end the humanitarian crisis for women, children and the hostages in Gaza", Saskia Kluit (Netherlands, SOC), made the following statement today: "I am appalled by last night’s...
05/09/2025 | Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Against a backdrop of geopolitical tensions and budgetary constraints, and in the face of worsening inequalities in access to healthcare, the Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development today emphasised the importance of promoting universal health coverage (UHC), based on the...