Adopted by the 4 th European Parliament of Persons with Disabilities – Brussels, 6 December 2017
Calling on the Council to adopt a General Approach
Highlighting the importance for the disability movement of the proposal for the European Accessibility Act (Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States as regards the accessibility requirements for products and services COM/2015/0615 final – 2015/0278 (COD));
Recalling that there are 80 million persons with disabilities in the European Union (EU) and that an accessible Internal Market would benefit not only persons with disabilities but also older people and persons with functional limitations, responding to the demographic change, and take into account the needs of all consumers;
Considering that the issues at stake are vital priorities for persons with disabilities who still face significant barriers to access environments, facilities, products and services throughout the EU, including those receiving directly or indirectly public funding and would benefit greatly from a strong and progressive legislative act that protects them from discrimination and ensures an inclusive European Internal Market;
Bearing in mind that the EU, having concluded the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), is obliged to adopt appropriate legislative measures to ensure the right to accessibility under Article 9 of the UN CRPD and that the Act does not establish any new obligations;
Considering that the European Parliament has already adopted its position on 14 September 2017 and that finalizing the Council position is necessary to start trialogues as soon as possible;
The European Disability Forum calls on the Council of the European Union to live up to its obligations to implement the CRPD in the EU and to adopt an ambitious and forward-looking General Approach to the European Accessibility Act at the EPSCO meeting on 7 December 2017.