"The so-called poverty migration from Bulgaria and Romania was and undoubtedly remains one of the big challenges for the city of Gelsenkirchen", the municipality itself announced a few days ago. This is actually nothing new. Now, however, the city is acquiring a new set of tools that it will be able to use against the abuse of social benefits and abandoned properties.
The federal government has adopted an action plan against social benefits fraud. It lists ten points. The goal: for the various departments to exchange data more easily and quickly. Cities must be able to prohibit the use of neglected properties, and expropriation will also be possible for this purpose. Anyone who works little or only fictitiously will no longer receive additional social benefits.
All of these are issues that Gelsenkirchen has long advocated for - to the federal state, as well as to the government in Berlin, and to the EU, writes the German public media outlet VDR in an article on the subject. "The persistence with which these problems have been addressed for years is now yielding results", says Gelsenkirchen Mayor Andrea Henze of the Social Democratic Party (SPD).
The problems that Gelsenkirchen is addressing have existed in the city for years. In particular, "poverty migration" - mainly of people from Bulgaria and Romania. Currently, around 12,000 people from both countries live in Gelsenkirchen. Many of them came for the cheap housing and the prospect of work. However, fraudsters often place people in dilapidated houses for exorbitant rents and collect a large part of the social benefits paid. The houses continue to collapse, and garbage often accumulates around them. There are also complaints about disturbing the peace.
What is Gelsenkirchen doing?
However, Gelsenkirchen has not only drawn attention to these problems, but has also already taken a number of measures itself. Back in 2013, the city drew up a concept for immigration from Bulgaria and Romania. Three years ago, the municipality also set up a service to combat the abuse of social benefits, the VDR reported.
For example, 4,500 people have been deregistered by the municipality. Apparently, they were registered as residents solely for the purpose of receiving social benefits. In addition, a total of around 640 cases of abuse of benefits have been uncovered.
The city has already withdrawn 80 neglected properties from the market - with the help of the North Rhine-Westphalia Ministry of Construction and subsidies from the state and the federal government. Now these houses will be demolished, and new residential buildings, commercial buildings or green spaces will be built in their place.
In terms of the free movement of workers, Gelsenkirchen applies stricter measures than other cities. Here, an immigrant is considered a worker only when he earns a third of his own living expenses. Only then is he entitled to social benefits. In other cities, even a so-called mini-job of 603 euros is enough to receive additional assistance.
This is clearly yielding results. Because more and more people have been leaving the city again recently. Last year, nearly 500 people from Southeast Europe left Gelsenkirchen.
To prevent "poverty migration" from Bulgaria and Romania
With the new package of measures presented by the government in Berlin, Mayor Andrea Henze and the municipal administration are hoping for even more success. "Our resources are limited. But the federal government's plan expands our options for action," says the mayor. For example, under new measures voted in Berlin, cities can refuse to pay rent to people on social welfare if their homes are uninhabitable.
However, the mayor also has one request for the EU: the free movement of workers within the EU must be reviewed so that "poverty migration" from Bulgaria and Romania can be limited in the long term. "We need more concrete and binding commitments," says Henze.