The Disability Intergroup has promoted and advanced the rights of persons with disabilities in Europe for over 40 years. In 2022, this grouping of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) has been advocating for the rights of persons with disabilities through their participation in key events, debates, reports, opinions, initiatives, and many more actions. Their work covered several topics, including equal rights, combating violence against women, independent living, and the future Accessible EU center. In this article, we summarised the Disability Intergroups’ key and influential actions of 2022.
Key Achievements
- In May 2022, the European Parliament adopted a resolution including a proposal for a new EU Electoral Law guaranteeing the right to vote for all persons with disabilities.
- In October 2022, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union adopted the Directive on adequate minimum wages which sets requirements to make accessible to persons with disabilities: information on statutory wages, minimum wage protection provided by universally applicable collective agreements, and redress mechanisms.
- In October 2022, the European Parliament adopted MEP Langensiepen’s self-initiative report on the AccessibleEU centre which aims to support the implementation of accessibility policies across the EU. Many Members of the Intergroup participated in the report and the debate preceding its adoption by Parliament.
- In November 2022, the European Parliament adopted the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) with disability-related provisions that guarantee large companies publish information related to Human rights and diversity on company boards
- In December 2022, the European Parliament adopted MEP Anne-Sophie Pelletier’s report on equal rights for persons with disabilities. The report calls for the adoption of several measures necessary to implement the rights of persons with disabilities and many Members of the Intergroup took part in the debate, supporting the adoption of the report.
Ongoing work for 2023
In 2023, the Disability Intergroup will continue to advocate for Human and disability rights in Europe. Ongoing Legislative includes:
- MEP Marisa Matias and other members are currently working on the Energy Performance of Building Directive amendments. These amendments will work to ensure that any action under the “Green Deal” is inclusive of persons with disabilities and that sustainability includes accessibility.
- Disability Intergroup members continue to work on the Directive on combating violence against women to improve the text and to include the rights of women and girls with disabilities. These improvements include the criminalisation of forced sterilisation, accessibility for adequate support and training of professionals, and a push for effective data and research.
- The Artificial Intelligence Act is being worked on by MEP Brando Benifei and other members to include amendments such as mandatory accessibility requirements, proper rights and redress mechanisms, meaningful accountability, and civil society participation.
Other policies in which the Disability Intergroup will be active this year will include the announced Commission action on mental health, the conclusions and recommendations of the special committee on COVID-19, the upcoming European elections in 2024, the EU policies on humanitarian action, and the consequences of the war in Ukraine.
Read more about the Disability Intergroup bureau priorities for 2023 in the outcomes of the Intergroup meeting of February 2023.