We are happy to report that the European Commission reversed its decision to withdraw the Equal Treatment Directive. This came after strong complaints from civil society organisations, Members of the European Parliament and EU countries.
The Equal Treatment Directive is a proposed legislation that aims to enhance protection against discrimination in areas of life outside employment. Unfortunately, its adoption has been blocked for 17 years due to opposition from some Member States – most recently Germany, Italy and Czechia.
The Commission had proposed to withdraw it due to the ongoing stalling, a move that was strongly opposed by us and other equality organisations. We consider that, given the current environment, its withdrawal would represent a backslide on equality and caving to anti-democratic actors.
This is a positive development that must be followed by decisive action from the Council. We thank the work of Members of the European Parliament Alice Bah Kunke and Maria Walsh in supporting the proposal.
We are now calling on the Danish Presidency and national governments to break the 17-year deadlock and finally agree to the Equal Treatment Directive.