Three new Flash Reports produced by the European Social Policy Network (ESPN) are now available and provide information on recent developments in social protection in Cyprus, Romania and Hungary.

• As a consequence of the economic crisis, many households in Cyprus are unable to keep up with their mortgage payments. At the same time, banks are eager to improve their very low ratings by repossessing property, thereby reducing the large and increasing number of their non-performing loans. A scheme has recently been introduced to support vulnerable households that are facing economic hardship and are unable to fulfil their mortgage obligations. This scheme protects the primary residence of these households by subsidising their mortgage interest payments.
• In 2015, the Romanian government approved a draft law that restores the previous military pension scheme. Apart from social equity concerns, this represents a step back for the pension reform as it reverses the recently unified pension system to a more fragmented one. While this does not pose an immediate threat to the social insurance budget, its medium-term social costs may prove significant.
• The public works scheme in Hungary has been a very dynamic employment programme since 2010. It has become the most important employment scheme for vulnerable people, including the Roma, and will probably be extended in 2016. Yet, it does not significantly improve employment prospects of participants. According to recent studies, scarcely more than 10% of participants find a job on the regular labour market six months after taking part in the programme.