Report on social inclusion in the new Member States

In the new Member States, we might define the principal problems involved in attaining social inclusion as follows: the low level of employment, shortcomings in health-care provision and the education system, and the problem of social exclusion of minorities. On average, the level of employment in the new Member States is 8% lower than in the old Member States, and a further difficulty is that regional disparities are significantly greater. EU surveys show that increasing employment in the new Member States would create a basis for significant progress in combating poverty, but employment policy by itself cannot entirely eliminate poverty. Nonetheless, combating poverty is a far greater challenge in the new Member States than in the old ones.