A Europe-wide coalition of unions and housing-rights groups, with participants from France, Spain, Italy, the UK, Portugal, Greece, and Belgium, is planning coordinated protests on November 20–22 to address the cost of living and housing rights.

Portugal has seen student-led actions in Lisbon and Porto, with a youth strike slated for November 20 that aligns with broader European moves against fossil fuels.

France has seen youth-led demonstrations over education funding and the Parcoursup system, expanding into wider anti-cost-of-living protests with unions and the gilets jaunes.

Leaders describe the mobilization as unprecedented in scale, arguing people should govern rather than billionaires and connecting housing costs to broader cost-of-living pressures.

Core demands include a guaranteed right to housing, price controls on housing, food, and energy, stronger public services, and higher wages and pensions, plus broader social aims like inclusive work rights.

Participants emphasize preserving public services (education, health, public housing), the right to work without migrant exclusion, wealth taxation, and opposition to arms spending and fossil fuel development.

The movement calls for an end to fossil fuel policies and arms development, alongside tax measures targeting the wealthy and expanded public services.

Participants include French, Spanish, Italian, British, Portuguese, Greek, and Belgian organizations, with notable groups such as the Spanish tenant unions, CGT, Solidaires, and the DAL (Housing Rights).

Carme Arcarazo, spokesperson for the Spanish Confederation of Tenant Unions, described the effort as a crucial cross-border moment and stressed cooperation to advance their agenda.

Leading organizers CGT, Solidaires, and the housing-rights association seek to mobilize millions and coordinate Europe-wide actions to push for policy changes, according to Carme Arcarazo.

EU data show housing prices up more than 60% since 2010 and rents up around 29%, with over 16.5 million EU households in 2024 spending more than 40% of income on housing.

Organizers frame the protests as a response to rising living costs, advocating taxes on the wealthy, ending fossil fuel policies, and shifting away from rearmament.