The European Parliament held a debate about the AccessibleEU Centre on 11 March. Several Members of the European Parliament and of the Disability Intergroup called on the Commission to strengthen the Centre and to enforce EU legislation on accessibility during it.
Summary:
- The debate recognised the success of the AccessibleEU Centre.
- Several Members of the European Parliament called to develop this centre into a regulatory European Agency for Accessibility.
- Members of the European Parliament also noted the need to ensure disability and accessibility are integrated in the EU Budget 2027-2034.
European Commission notes success of AccessibleEU Centre
The debate opened with a statement by the European Commissioner for Climate, Wopke Hoekstra, on behalf of the Commissioner for Equality, Hadja Lahbib.
The Commissioner started by listing the achievements of the AccessibleEU Centre:
- Over 5000 members in its community of practice;
- Over 450 good practices on accessibility in its digital library;
- Organisation of over 269 events.
He mentioned the need for:
- More specialised training for accessibility professionals;
- Consolidation of accessibility policies;
- Strengthening the capacity of economic operators to deliver accessible solutions, including Artificial Intelligence, assistive technology and accessible buildings.
Notable interventions
- Several Members of the European Parliament (MEP) specifically supported the disability movement’s call for a regulatory European Agency for Accessibility. These included MEP Katrin Langensiepen, MEP Ciaran Mullooly, MEP Elena Kountora, MEP Romana Jerković and MEP Estrella Galán.
- Members of the European Parliament also underlined the need to add strong rules on disability during the negotiations for the EU Budget 2027-2034. These included MEP Li Andersson, MEP Valérie Devaux, MEP Elisabetta Gualmini, and MEP Sandra Goméz López. MEP Li Andersson specified that the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities should be a principle in the next EU Budget. She also stated that EU Funds should not support segregated institutions.
- MEP Giusi Princi and MEP Geadis Geadi underlined the need to guarantee accessible, affordable housing.
- MEP Jagna Marczułajtis called for concrete solutions for independent living. She called for consequences for Member States that ignore accessibility laws and asked for concrete accessibility standards.
- MEP Chiara Gemma called for European Funds to support the development of accessible materials, including in sign language.
European Commission
Commissioner Hoekstra closed the debate by affirming that the updated EU Strategy on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities will “continue to have accessibility at its heart”.