Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou on Friday promised that during Cyprus’ six-month term as the holder of the Council of the European Union’s rotating presidency, he will work to solve the bloc’s “rapidly worsening housing problem”.

He said the issue of affordable housing impacts all 27 of the EU’s member states and “has emerged as one of the most central issues in the European public debate”.

“Despite the fact that housing policy remains a national competence, the increasing difficulty for a large number of European citizens to secure access to affordable and sustainable housing makes a coordinated European response necessary,” he said.

He said that the appointment of a European housing commissioner, Dan Jorgensen, by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in 2024 is evidence that “the importance of effectively managing the issue has been recognised at the highest political level in the EU”.

“Addressing the housing crisis is a complex undertaking, but there is strong political will for cooperation so that the crisis can be turned into an opportunity for the EU, for the benefit of European citizens,” he said.

To this end, he said Cyprus will host an informal ministerial meeting on housing in May.

Additionally, he pointed out the publication of the European affordable housing plan by the commission by last month.

That plan is based on four pillars – boosting housing supply, mobilising investment, enabling immediate support while driving reforms, and protecting the most affected.

Regarding the first pillar, the commission said it will “strengthen the productivity and innovation in construction”, promoting “advanced construction materials and methods, such as offsite and modular construction, and digitalisation to increase resource efficiency and reduce building costs”.

It added that it will “cut red tape to accelerate housing supply”, and that to this end, a new “housing simplification package” will be put forward with the aim of “reducing administrative burden, accelerating permitting and renovation, and improving cost efficiency”.

In addition, it said it will “combine affordability, sustainability, and quality” in housing construction.

On this point, it said that “innovative materials and construction techniques will be utilised to ensure housing is cost-effective, environmentally friendly, and of high quality”.

To mobilise investment, it said it will cerate a new “pan-European investment platform2 in cooperation with the European investment bank as well as national and regional banks and other financial institutions.

It said it will also revise state aid rules so as to enable “faster and simpler public support for social and affordable housing”. That revision, it said, will allow member states to plan and execute social and affordable housing projects without notifying or receiving authorisation from the commission.

Regarding the third pillar, “enabling immediate support while driving reforms”, it said it will “address short-term rentals in areas under housing stress”, with this referring to holiday rentals and other short-term rental platforms, such as AirBnB.

On this front, it said it will “propose a new legislative initiative on short-term rentals to mitigate their impact on local housing affordability, maintaining a balance with tourism benefits”.

It also said it will address “speculation in the housing market” by “identifying speculative behaviours” and “promoting transparency”.

Additionally, it said it will “drive forward member states’ structural reforms”, and that to this end, it will “encourage reforms in areas such as spatial planning, social housing, and taxation”.

This, it said, will “reduce complexity and enhance housing supply” across the EU.

On the matter of “protecting the most affected”, it said it will “mobilise investment for student housing, promote innovative housing models for young people, and help mobile students from disadvantaged backgrounds”.

Additionally, it said, it will “prevent and address homelessness” and do this by “expanding social housing and supporting people in vulnerable situations”.