Disability strategy 2010 - 2020: European disability intergroup goes next step

 

31 March 2011 - The Disability Intergroup of the European Parliament met the Hungarian Presidency on 30 March 2011. MEP Ádám Kósa (Hungary, EPP) hosted the meeting, which focused on the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the European Disability Strategy 2010-2020. Vice President of EDF Ms Erzsébet Földesi and the Hungarian government representative Mr András László participated to the discussion.

The representative of the Hungarian Presidency outlined the Presidency’s priorities on disability and presented a number of activities that would be taking place. In particular, a high-level conference in Budapest in April and Council conclusions on disability were mentioned among the forthcoming activities.

EDF representative stressed the crucial importance of involvement of the disability movement in all decision relating to the implementation of the UN CRPDand the European Disability Strategy:

-In relation to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, EDF

  • recalled its proposal for the establishment of the European Disability Committee to coordinate the implementation efforts among the EU and its Member States
  • urged the Presidency to revive the negotiations on the conclusion of the Optional Protocol to the CRPD by the EU.
  • stressed the need to mainstream disability throughout all policy areas, including the Gender Pact and demographics. The European Disability Strategy 2010-2020 should be used to its maximum to implement the obligations under the CRPD.

The Disability Intergroup was followed by the meeting convened by Ádám Kósa MEP who is currently working on a Parliament report on the European Disability Strategy 2010-2020. A number of European NGOs were invited to consult on the draft report. To EDF, the focus of the report should be on the freedom of movement of persons of disabilities across the EU and the accessibility. Two concrete proposal made by the EDF to the report were on a strong European Accessibility Act and the creation of a European mobility card.