The European Parliament adopted a resolution based on the own-initiative report drawn up by Liz LYNNE (ALDE, UK) in response to the Commission communication on the situation of disabled people in the enlarged EU. (Please see the summary of 05/10/2006.) It began by stressing that non-discrimination in access to goods and services must be guaranteed for every EU citizen and called on the Commission to propose a directive specifically targeting people with disabilities on the basis of Article 13 of the EC Treaty. Parliament looked at the situation of disabled people in relation to transport, employment, access to information, access to buildings, education and care and the role of social services. It emphasised that there were many forms of disability, including people with mobility problems, visual impairments, hearing impairments, mental health problems, chronic illnesses and learning disabilities. People with multiple disabilities have exceptional problems, and greater attention should be paid to elderly people with disabilities and women with disabilities.

Parliament made the following principal points:

- Directive 2001/85/EC should be strengthened in order to bring it into line with Regulation 1107/2006/EC concerning the rights of disabled persons when travelling by air. The Commission was encouraged to extend the same legislative rights to persons with disabilities in relation to all modes of transport over time;

- over 80% of public websites, including those of the European institutions, are generally not accessible to people with disabilities, and those institutions were encouraged to rectify this;

- there was a need to launch information campaigns to ensure that employers view the engagement of people with disabilities without any kind of prejudice, in particular, as regards misconceptions concerning the financial costs of employment and candidates’ capabilities; people with disabilities under Directive 2000/78/EC and ways of protecting these rights and urges the trade unions to do all in their power to inform members of their rights under the Directive;

- Member States should take due account of the problems faced by parents of children with disabilities, who are often forced to remain outside the labour market, and to promote policies to support such parents; they should also use economic and social instruments to increase the scope for providing care to people with disabilities as part of intergenerational solidarity;

- the Commission must work with Member States to encourage the integration of people with disabilities, from an early age, in mainstream education, whilst still acknowledging in some cases that special schools are necessary;

- Parliament stressed the important role of sport as a factor for improving the quality of life, self-esteem, independence and social integration of people with disabilities;

- the different types of disability required personalised care that takes due account of the disabilities of growing children and those of adults;

- initiatives must be encouraged that develop greater interaction between the public and the mentally disabled, and to de-stigmatise people with mental health problems. Parliament appealed for the necessary support for the families of people with a profound disability;

and sign-language in analogue television programmes;

- vigorous measures must be taken against all forms of violence against people with disabilities, in particular women, elderly people and children, who are frequently victims of mental and physical as well as sexual violence;

- Parliament welcomed moving away from the institutionalisation of people with disabilities, but noted that deinstitutionalisation required a sufficient level of community-based services of high quality, favouring independent living, the right to assistance, and full participation in society within Member States;

- the Commission was asked to press for a European charter on quality of support for people with disabilities with a view to ensuring a high level of integration and participation, whatever the method of support – home, institution or a combination of methods;

- Parliament expressed concern that the Commission had not sufficiently considered the human rights of people with disabilities in assessing compliance with the Copenhagen Criteria within the process of EU enlargement;

- it called for a common European definition of disability;

- the Commission needs to define more clearly in its text the projects that had already been started under the Disability Action Plan; it should also pay more attention to the gender perspective and specific information on women with disabilities and parents of children with disabilities in the new phases of the Disability Action Plan.

The committee adopted the own-initiative report drawn up by Liz Lynne (ALDE, UK) in response to the Commission communication on the situation of disabled people in the enlarged EU (European Action Plan 2006-2007), which is the second phase of the EU Disability Action Plan.

The report stressed that access to public transport and information technologies are vital for disabled people, and also called for better integration of disabled people into mainstream education and the job market, as well as a European charter on quality of support for disabled people.

Among other proposals, MEPs pointed out that for air travel, disabled people and those with reduced mobility already have rights under EU law. They wanted the Commission to extend similar rights to disabled people for all modes of transport. The report welcomed moves by the Commission to improve access to information and communication technologies, but noted that 80% of public websites, including those of the EU institutions, are generally not accessible to people with disabilities. It also stressed that all EU documentation should be available on demand in accessible formats.

The committee said that the Commission should work with Member States to integrate disabled people from an early age into mainstream education wherever possible, and should study the idea of establishing a right to mainstream education for disabled children and their families if they wish it. Information campaigns are needed to raise awareness amongst employers of their responsibilities and to overcome any prejudices they may have about employing a disabled person. The report welcomed efforts to move away from the institutionalisation of disabled people, but it emphasised that this requires a sufficient level of community-based back-up services. To this end, the Commission was asked to press for a European charter on quality of support for disabled people.

PURPOSE : Commission Communication on the European Action Plan 2006-2007 on the situation of disabled people in the enlarged EU.

CONTENT : The EU Disability Action Plan (DAP) - established by the European Commission to ensure a coherent policy follow-up to the European Year of Disabled people in the enlarged Europe - provides a dynamic framework to develop the EU disability strategy. This Communication identifies priority objectives and actions for the second phase (2006-2007) of the DAP, focusing on the active inclusion of people with disabilities. Given the current demographic situation, the economic potential of disabled people and the contribution they can make to economic and employment growth must be further activated on the basis of the Social Agenda for 2005-2010. Moreover, in support of the refocused Lisbon strategy, this Communication calls on Member States to promote inclusion of disabled people in their forthcoming Reform Programmes for growth and jobs. This Communication is also the first EU report on the overall situation of disabled people which the Commission has undertaken to publish biennially on the European Day of Disabled People. It will be a tool for disability policy-makers throughout Europe, complementing and adding value to their policies and actions.

Three operational objectives are central to the DAP:

- full implementation of the Employment Equality Directive;

- successful mainstreaming of disability issues in relevant Community policies; and

- improving accessibility for all.

The DAP covers the period 2004-2010 in successive phases, each highlighting a number of inter-linked priorities. Phase 1 runs from 2004 to 2005, phase 2 from 2006 to 2007.

Priority areas for the second phase (2006-2007): Phase two of the DAP will focus on active inclusion of people with disabilities, building on the citizens’ concept of disability as reflected in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, and on the values inherent in the forthcoming UN Convention on the protection and promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities. It is implicit in the citizens' concept that disabled people have the same individual choices and control in their everyday life as non-disabled people. This emphasises the need for an environment that enables disabled people to be more independent.

Under the following four priorities, actions will promote the independent living of people with disabilities :

encouraging activity: strategies for the adaptation and reintegration into working life of people who become disabled during their working life will be encouraged. Rehabilitation services, individualised personal assistance and making work pay will be promoted. Promoting access to quality support and care services Fostering accessibility of goods and services: w ork on services, transport and increased accessibility of ICT, including access to the new generation of assistive systems, will add to current actions on accessibility of public buildings. Accessible transport systems will be promoted in and between urban areas. Increasing the EU’s analytical capacity: s tudies analysing data obtained from previous Eurostat surveys and the Labour Force Survey as well as data from Member States’ administrative registers will be launched. The Sixth Framework Programme for Research, technological development and demonstration activities (2002-2006, FP6), and the forthcoming Seventh Research Framework Programme (2007-2013) will continue to fund research in the area of disability.

Disability actions are chiefly the responsibility of Member States and are most effectively dealt with at national level. Increased mainstreaming of disability under the EU Action Plan, with operational support from the European Social Fund, contributes to equal opportunities in the enlarged Europe. The Commission will monitor implementation of the proposed actions through a continuous dialogue with all the stakeholders concerned. Midterm evaluation of the Action Plan will take place in 2008 as planned.

The long-term EU strategy for those with a disability is to offer them equal opportunities in life with the key objective being to offer disabled people the chance to live independently and to participate fully in society. The EU strategy is built on three pillars. The first relates to EU anti-discrimination legislation, which provide access to individual rights, the second seeks to eliminate environmental barriers preventing disabled people from exercising their abilities and the third is to mainstream disability issues in the broad range of Community policies in order to include, rather than exclude, those with a disability. In addition, the EU has established a “Disability Action Plan” (DAP) in a bid to ensure a coherent policy follow-up to the European Year of the Disabled in an enlarged Europe.

The Communication identifies priority actions for the second phase of DAP, which is set to last from 2006-2007 with an emphasis on the active inclusion of people with disabilities. At the same time, the Commission calls on the Member States to encourage the inclusion of disabled people in the forthcoming Reform Programmes for growth and jobs. This Communication acts as the first EU report on the overall situation of disabled people. It is to act as a tool for those formulating disability policies across Europe.

In its conclusion, the Commission notes that there is a broad consensus in the EU on the need to tackle disability issues. Emphasis must be placed on extending dignity to the disabled, guaranteeing their fundamental rights, offering them protection against discrimination and guaranteeing their social inclusion. The Commission recognises that issues relating to the disabled are chiefly the responsibility of the Member States and that any initiative can be most effectively handled at a national level. One area in which the EU can and does offer support is through the EU Action Plan, with operational help from the European Social Fund. The Report suggest that mainstreaming is key to advancing disability issues and takes note of the fact that the revised Lisbon strategy gives a greater emphasis on the mainstreaming of disability issues at a Member State level.

The new actions being proposed in line with the second phase of the DAP seek to encourage activity as well as promoting access to social services, while fostering accessible goods and services. Moreover, reliable and comparable statistical data on disability and information on multiple discrimination will be gathered by the Commission. Lastly, the Commission will monitor implementation of the proposed actions through a continuous dialogue with all interested parties. A mid-term evaluation of the Action Plan will take place in 2008 as planned.