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IP/11/391
Date:
01/04/2011
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The third Demography Report
published today in cooperation with Eurostat reveals Europeans are
living longer and healthier lives. It also shows how the structure of
Europe's population is continuing to change with the number of over 60s
in the EU is growing by 2m each year. The report confirms recent trends
and brings new data on fertility, life expectancy and migration with a
special focus on mobility and migration. It shows a slight increase in
fertility rates and an increase in life expectancy where, on average,
Europeans are now living two to three months longer for every year. The
European Union is also becoming more diverse and family patterns are
evolving with new Eurobarometer results suggesting that more and more
young Europeans report work experiences in another Member State. The
need to adjust EU policies to these developments is clearer than ever.
The report provides timely data which will feed into the European debate
on demographic change.
Presenting the
new report at the informal Ministerial meeting on demography and family
policy in Budapest, EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and
Inclusion, László Andor said: "Life expectancy is
increasing while Europe's workforce is shrinking and, in some Member
States, this is happening very fast. We have to adapt our policies
to promote a better work/life balance so parents can have children while
continuing to work, and we must design policies to encourage Europeans
to remain active longer". He added: "The EU's
Europe 2020 strategy provides the framework for efforts to increase
employment and reduce poverty but to tackle the demographic challenge we
also need to anchor our priorities in areas like health, migration and
regional policies".
A positive
trend in the report is that fertility continues to rise slowly. It has
increased from below 1.45 children per women to 1.6. However, for a
population to be self-sustaining, 2.1 children per woman would be
required. The report points to modern family policies as a good way to
improve employment through better reconciliation between paid work and
family commitments. It shows a positive correlation between women's
participation in work and higher fertility rates.
Life
expectancy has also been increasing in an almost continuous and uniform
trend at the rate of 2-3 months every year (in 2008 life expectancy for
the EU-27 was 76.4 for men and 82.4 for women), and is the main driver
behind the population ageing. At the same time, the demographic
challenge is geographical with populations in four Member states (BG,
LT, LV, RO) decreasing rapidly under the effects of natural growth (more
people die than are born) and outward-migration. The population of
Central Europe is ageing slowly at the moment but will age very fast
from 2030-2040 to become the oldest population in the EU (oldest will be
SK).
The report also shows how
Europe's population growth is still fuelled mainly by immigration.
Non-EU citizens have been joining EU countries at a rate of 1 to 2
million per year and intra-EU mobility has also increased. By 2060 the
proportion of migrants and their descendants will double. Although net
immigration to the EU halved following the crisis, the total number of
non-EU nationals within EU borders still continued to rise. Data shows
this fall has been due to a drop in migration for employment, yet there
has been an increase in requests for permits for education for example.
New
data also show that second generation-migrants tend to achieve levels
similar to locals in education and strive to reach similar levels in
employment, but are still held back by high unemployment rates. This is a
particular area where the EU needs to continue promoting active
inclusion policies and measures to foster integration.
In
terms of intra-EU mobility, the new Eurobarometer survey shows that one
in five of the EU-27 respondents has either worked, or studied in
another country, lived with a partner form another country or owns
property abroad. One in ten of the respondents plan to move to another
Member State in the next ten years.
Background
The
Demography Report is published every two years by the European
Commission and provides the latest facts and figures that are needed to
assess where Member States stand in responding to the challenges of
demographic change. This year the report is a joint undertaking with
Eurostat, and has a special focus on mobility and migration.
The
report was presented during the thematic week Europe for Families,
Families for Europe – Population Issues and Policies Awareness Week
organised in Budapest by the Hungarian Presidency. The Commission also
presented the results of a Eurobarometer survey on new Europeans. The
survey was commissioned to gain insight into peoples’ connectedness to
other countries. Those data will feed into the debate ahead of possible
communication on demography and the European Year 2012 dedicated to
active ageing
More information
Video News Release: Bridging Europe's pensions gap :
Video News Release: Ageing population:
Demography and the social situation in the EU
Demography Report 2010: More, older and more diverse Europeans :
Eurobarometer on new Europeans :
Commissioner Andor's website:
See also: MEMO/11/209
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