The youth organisations of the Luxembourg Socialist Workers’ Party (LSAP), the Christian Social People’s Party (CSV), the Democratic Party (DP), The Greens (Déi Gréng), and The Left (Déi Lénk) have joined forces to increase pressure on the government and local municipalities to take decisive action on the country’s housing crisis.
Notably, the youth section of the Alternative Democratic Reform Party (ADR) was excluded from this alliance.
This broad alliance, initiated by the young socialists, reflects a consensus among centre and left-wing youth parties. When asked about the ADR’s exclusion, Alice Hoffmann of the Left’s youth organisation replied: "That’s obvious, isn’t it?"
However, others noted that even traditionally left-wing groups were included. Lou Linster of the young democrats pointed out the difficulty of "reaching consensus" with parties on the far right.
Olivier Cano, co-president of the Socialist youth, explained that the youth section of the ADR was not included because their focus lies elsewhere, specifically on issues like gun legalisation rather than tackling the housing crisis.
The young socialists expressed strong opposition to including the ADR in their discussions. Alice Hoffmann further remarked that the alliance is based on a clear consensus not to collaborate with parties considered to be on the far right. She welcomed the fact that this principle had been upheld.
The president of ADR’s youth section, Maks Woroszylo, dismissed the criticisms, arguing that excluding a party is a mistake. Internationally, dialogue between parties is often beneficial, and isolating a party is not the right approach, according to him.
He also pointed out that the ADR received around 10 percent of the vote in the last election and expressed hope that the party would continue to grow.
The ADR youth wing would have accepted an invitation to join the alliance, as they also want young people raised in Luxembourg to be able to live in the country.
However, he acknowledged that housing had only featured to a limited extent in the party’s previous electoral programme.
Despite political differences, the five youth parties agreed on a 12-point plan to address the housing crisis. Their proposals include establishing a national housing register to monitor vacant properties.
The alliance emphasises that municipalities should take a proactive role rather than waiting for direction from central government.
According to Maxime Pantaleoni, co-spokesperson for The Greens’ youth wing, Luxembourg City in particular should assume responsibility in this area, given its financial resources and the scale of its housing stock.
Pantaleoni also argued that it is not responsible for the mayor to oppose the ministries and refuse to cooperate during a crisis of this magnitude.
With a comprehensive register, the youth parties propose introducing a tax on vacant homes to discourage speculation.
They also advocate for revising the rules of the National Affordable Housing Company (SNHBM), suggesting that housing prices should reflect the real purchasing power of residents rather than being tied purely to construction costs.
Alice Hoffmann of The Left’s youth wing explained that aligning prices with the actual financial capacity of households would result in a much more realistic housing market.
The alliance also calls for the swift implementation of measures to mobilise building land, specifically the ministerial land consolidation process and the building land contract.
Both instruments have been delayed for nearly a decade, despite being included in current and previous coalition agreements.
Lou Linster of the DP youth wing emphasised the need for the government and the Council of State to resolve the legal barriers to implementing these reforms.
Regarding rental prices, the five parties support the introduction of a link between maximum permitted rents and the energy rating of a property.
Metty Steinmetz, president of the CSV youth wing, highlighted that many homes are in poor energy condition and that the need for fair rents is even more pressing in light of the ongoing climate and energy transition.
He also noted the impact of hot summers and high heating costs in winter on tenants.
These are just some of the twelve demands put forward to address the urgent housing situation. The Socialist youth have announced plans for further actions to mobilise young people around this issue.
It is yet to be seen whether the youth wings of parties in government will be able or willing to deliver on these proposals.
