The “Silver Economy” has arrived at the top of the European Policy Agenda

In the resolution, the Council emphasises that: “the increased ageing of the population is not only a challenge but also offers opportunities to improve the competitiveness and innovative abilities of the European economy and to promote growth and employment” “responding to the needs of older people by making accessible specific goods and services to improve their quality of life represents new economic opportunities ("silver economy") which should be seized upon to enhance economic growth and create new jobs”

The Council invites the Commission: “to continue to work on the opportunities and challenges of demographic change on a horizontal basis, so that the possible contributions of all policy areas may be considered when developing options to act” … “to support relevant fora also at national, regional and local levels, thus promoting the necessary exchange of experience in dealing with the consequences of demographic change; to take measures to enable the envisaged high-level expert group quickly to commence its work on demographic issues and to set out its priorities in a work programme; … to take into account the growing and diversifying demand for goods and services for older people in the 7th Framework Programme on Research in order to encourage developments in this area and thus to increase the chance of Europe becoming a leading example of the "silver economy"; to take care that, on the basis of the possibilities offered by the European Structural Funds, appropriate financial support is granted to local, regional and national initiatives for adapting to and positively coping with demographic change;

It also invites the Member States: “to respond to the needs of an ageing society and to create suitable framework conditions for opening new markets in the context of the "silver economy" in order to make better use of the opportunities for economic growth. This includes, in particular, the development of innovative approaches for activities which reflect different regional and national conditions and for which financial support from the European Structural Funds should be used; to facilitate access to knowledge and experience gained when coping with the consequences of demographic change, in particular to relevant studies and innovative approaches, and thus to facilitate the exchange of experience at European level; here, Member States may make use, in particular, of the experience of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions; to establish partnerships, for example with industry, trade federations and chambers of trade and commerce and with older people's associations with the aim of encouraging the development of "silver economy" products and services; to support initiatives at all levels that promote solidarity between the generations by encouraging the active participation of the elderly in society; the establishment of networks and the exchange of experience in respect of such initiatives should be supported with the aim of enhancing their spread and effectiveness".