French department trials ‘income scheme’ for young people
The scheme is aiming to help those who do not qualify for any other support
The scheme will give a small income to young people, along with support to help them in a related project
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A department in eastern France is set to become the first nationwide to trial a scheme that will offer regular income to young people aged 16 to 25, in a bid to give them “leverage and support”.
The departmental assembly in Meurthe-et-Moselle (Grand Est) has granted the department permission to run the trial for three years, after a vote on September 26.
The amount will be €500, paid over two six-month periods. It will begin on October 1.
To be eligible for the ‘revenu d'émancipation jeunes (youth emancipation income)”, the young people must have little to no income currently, and be ineligible for other forms of financial assistance.
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Chaynesse Khirouni, the chair of the departmental council, said: “We are targeting those who are…unfortunately known as ‘drop-outs’.”
In November, she estimated that the trial would initially include around 300 young people, mainly those who had “broken away from their families, are wandering or in a period of transition”.
Support is ‘keystone of the scheme’
As part of the scheme, the young people will also have follow-up sessions to offer additional support and see how they are faring, which is “the keystone of the scheme…its raison d'être”, said Lionel Adam, departmental councillor in charge of the project.
This separate support will be “gradual”, and will aim to “create a bond of trust” and develop a project with the young people, in a bid to “mobilise them…create confidence” and see the “concrete involvement” of the beneficiary.
To this end, a charter will be signed between the Department and the young person, which will state that the local authority will “listen to and support the young person's efforts”, when the latter must “respect the values of the Republic and its symbols”.
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Poverty rate of 26%
The trial is starting in Meurthe-et-Moselle partly because of its high poverty rate among those under 30. This is at more than 26%. Similarly, 14% of young people are not in employment, education or training, said Mr Adam.
The scheme is set to cost €1 million initially, said Ms Khirouni.
Alongside the trial, the department is also trialling a project named ‘Territoire zéro non recours’, which will help ensure that people are claiming all of the benefits for which they are eligible.
The plan has been welcomed by some, including Nicolas Duvoux, Chairman of the Conseil national des politiques de lutte contre la pauvreté et l'exclusion sociale (national council for policies to combat poverty and social exclusion). He praised the department's “exemplary approach”.
Yet, some councillors were not in favour of the plan.
Anne Lassus, from the centre-right council union - which voted against the scheme - said that money is “a rare commodity” at the moment, when “the department's finances are in the worst shape”.
