Niels Geuking· PPE

Unverifiable

Child poverty costs more than 170 billion euros annually through lost productivity, higher health costs and later transfer payments

Omissions

• The MEP did not cite any source for the 170 billion euro figure
• The commonly cited figure in recent reports (Save the Children 2025, Council 2026) is 3.4% of GDP, which equals approximately 570-600 billion euros annually - significantly higher than the claimed 170 billion
• No indication of which specific costs are included in the 170 billion calculation (lost productivity, health costs, transfer payments)
• No reference year provided for the data

Sources

• PrimaryCouncil of the European Union - Press ReleaseThe transmission of disadvantage from childhood to adulthood leads to an estimated loss of 3.4% of GDP every year
• SecondarySave the Children - Child Poverty Report3.4% of GDP is the annual economic cost of childhood disadvantage, which translates to hundreds of billions of euros each year for the EU