Today, Commissioner for Equality Hadja Lahbib meets with the Parliament’s Civil Liberties Committee to discuss the proposed withdrawal of the Equal Treatment Directive.
We have strongly denounced this intention and warned that it will have negative consequences. Not only is the Directive a way to fulfil the obligations inscribed in the EU Treaties, but also its proposed withdrawal sends a worrying sign. Groups that are marginalised and discriminated against must be protected now more than ever.
One of the Commission’s reasons for withdrawal is that national governments have been blocking its adoption for 17 years. While this is not a good reason to withdraw the Directive, it needs to change.
Today, we are not only calling on the Commission to reconsider the proposed withdrawal. We are also calling on national governments to break the 17-year deadlock and finally agree to the Equal Treatment Directive.
We and our members sent the letter below to several governments. Join us in ensuring more protection for persons suffering from discrimination!
Follow the meeting live on 12 May from 14:30.
Subject: Last call to agree on the proposed EU Equal Treatment Directive before its withdrawal
We, [name of your organisation], the national representative organisation of persons with disabilities in [country] are deeply concerned regarding the European Commission’s recent announcement to withdraw the proposal for a Council Directive on implementing the principle of equal treatment between persons irrespective of disability, religion or belief, age, or sexual orientation – the proposed Equal Treatment Directive. We write to urge you one more time to find a swift agreement about this legislation in the Council of the EU before it is too late.
This decision by the European Commission, taken without consultation or warning to the EU co-legislators or representative organisations of affected groups, signifies a serious backtracking on the EU’s commitment to equality and fundamental rights. The justification offered—17 years of blockage by Member States—does not excuse the abandonment of a legislative proposal that is still vital to millions of Europeans who remain unprotected from discrimination in many areas of life.
The Equal Treatment Directive is essential to fill a critical gap in EU anti-discrimination legislation. For persons with disabilities, it would finally ensure that the denial of reasonable accommodation and lack of accessibility are recognised as discrimination across a wide range of areas, including education, health care, housing, social protection, and access to goods and services. These are all domains in which persons with disabilities still face systemic and widespread barriers.
Last month, the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities reviewed the European Union and expressed clear concern at the proposed withdrawal of this Directive, as persons with disabilities are not protected beyond employment. The UN CRPD committee explicitly called on generating “the necessary political support” to pass the law. Such political support is in your hands by supporting or abstaining to the latest text agreed at the Council.
Because the Commission’s withdrawal of the Directive can be revoked if the Council – meaning the three blocking Member States – change their position before the six months deadline given by the Commission in February.
In this context, we urge you to revise your position expressed in the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council configuration in order to support the negotiation and adoption of this key legislation for Europeans with disabilities.
This is a final opportunity to show leadership and fulfil the obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the EU Treaties. The adoption of this Directive would be a landmark achievement in the fight against discrimination and a long-awaited step toward real equality for all.
We remain at your disposal to provide further information or to meet with you to discuss this matter.
Yours sincerely,