Equal Treatment Directive Negotiations to Restart after Cancelled Withdrawal

Equal Treatment Directive Negotiations to Restart after Cancelled Withdrawal

In July 2025, the European Commission reversed its decision of withdrawing the Equal Treatment Directive proposal, as reported by different news outlets (here and here).

To recall, as reported in Previous EPR News Articles (available here and here), in February 2025, the European Commission (EC) had announced its intention to withdraw the Equal Treatment Directive proposal – a decision received as a significant setback for anti-discrimination efforts within the EU by civil society.  This Directive aims to establish EU-wide protections against discrimination based on religion or belief, disability, age, or sexual orientation in areas beyond employment, such as social protection, education, and access to goods and services.

The last step remaining to adopt the Equal Treatment Directive is reaching a unanimous vote at the EU Council (meaning that all EU Member States must agree), which has not been achieved since the start of Council negotiations in 2009. The Danish presidency of the Council of the EU* is expected to bring the issue to the agenda when EU employment and social ministers meet on 1 December. Three main countries are understood to disagree with the current compromise text: Germany, Czechia, and Italy.

* 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.

More information on the Employment and Social Policy Council meeting will become available here.