This year, more than ever before, disability was at the forefront of the issues the European Commission is urging EU countries to improve in its Spring Package publication, a part of the European Semester process.
What does it say about disability?
The Spring Package is a part of the European Semester process, an initiative that aims to align EU Member States when shaping their economic and social policies. Two of the most important documents delivered to each Member State are the Country Reports and the Country-specific Recommendations.
There has been a very noticeable increase in mentions of disability within the documents of this year’s Package. It shows that the European Commission is increasingly aware of the issues faced by persons with disabilities and the responsibility of EU countries to address them. It is also the result of increased pressure from organisations of persons with disabilities to ensure the Commission does not let national governments deprioritise these issues
Four Member States had a disability issue included in their country-specific recommendations, meaning that these are a priority to address. Belgium, Bulgaria and Ireland received recommendations regarding the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the labour market, and Estonia received a recommendation on the adequacy of its social protection schemes for persons with disabilities.
This is a very clear increase from previous years, where disability was usually limited to the recitals that provide context for these documents.
It is, in fact, very rare to have reference to a specific group, such as persons with disabilities, in the recommendations themselves.
In which areas is disability mentioned?
The most common topics mentioning disability in the country reports were the following, ordered from the most frequent to the least:
- Employment (appeared in 27 out of the 27 country reports)
- Poverty and social exclusion (22 out of 27 country reports)
- Social protection and disability allowance (10 out of 27 country reports)
- Support services and long-term care (9 out of 27 country reports)
- Education (7 out of 27 country reports)
- De-institutionalisation (6 out of 27 country reports)
- Housing (3 out of 27 country reports)
- Healthcare (2 out of 27 country reports)
- Urban planning (2 out of 27 country reports)
- Digitalisation (2 out of 27 country reports)
- Transport (1 out of 27 country reports)
- Energy poverty (1 out of 27 country reports)
- Climate preparedness (1 out of 27 country reports)
Our full analysis of the European Semester Spring Package 2025
You can find our full analysis for each Member State on our website, or you can directly download it below:
- (Word document) EDF Analysis of the European Semester Spring Package 2025
- (PDF document) EDF Analysis of the European Semester Spring Package 2025
Contact
For more information on the analysis, you can contact Haydn Hammersley, EDF’s Social Policy Coordinator, at haydn.hammersley@edf-feph.org.