25 EU Countries Sign a Joint Declaration on Awareness-raising of People with Disabilities – Council Danish Presidency Publishes its Priorities

25 EU Countries Sign a Joint Declaration on Awareness-raising of People with Disabilities – Council Danish Presidency Publishes its Priorities

On 23 June, the Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU distributed among the governments of the other EU Member States a declaration asking for their support in promoting awareness-raising activities about persons with disabilities. In July, this declaration was signed by 25 Member States.  This action of the Polish Presidency is aligned with Article 8 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD), which the EU as a whole and all Member States, separately, have signed. This Article requires the parties who signed the Convention to raise public awareness of issues affecting persons with disabilities, and to take measures to strengthen respect for the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities.

In parallel, 19 June, the Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU made their website and priorities public*. These included:

• Engaging in the Quality Jobs Roadmap and the new European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan.
• Approving Council Conclusions with priorities for the updated European Strategy for the rights of persons with disabilities.
• Collaborating with civil society organisations to encourage independent living, including support for living in one’s own home.
• Working on improving conditions for vulnerable children within the framework of the European Child Guarantee.
• Prioritising the future of ageing and long-term care, ensuring quality, accessibility and improved conditions in line with the European Care Strategy.
• Proposing Council Conclusions addressing the Commission’s Affordable Housing Plan.
• Seeking unanimity in the Council to adopt the Equal Treatment Directive if the proposal remains on the table. If withdrawn, the Presidency will initiate political discussions on the best ways for the EU to strengthen efforts against discrimination based on religion, belief, disability, age and sexual orientation
• Concluding negotiations with the European Parliament on the Pharmaceutical package, and initiating the review of the Commission’s proposal on critical medicines.
• Implementing the EU’s Preparedness Strategy.

The Danish Presidency will organise two high level meetings on Disability. EPR will share with its members information about any recommendations or outputs from them at due time.

* Every 6 months, a new Member State has the presidency of the Council of the EU. The Priorities of a Presidency of the Council of the EU are the policy topics that they are interested in including in the agenda of the different meetings between EU ministers, in order to advance the policies’ legislative process and to reach common positions. The individual presidency’s priorities are also in line with the trio of presidencies’ priorities – the presidencies of the Council of the EU are grouped in groups of three presidencies, who establish priorities for the year and a half that the trio lasts in order to ensure continuity in their work. The current trio of presidencies is formed by Poland, Denmark and Cyprus, and their trio of presidencies’ priorities are available here.

Website of the Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU available here.

Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU priorities available here.