“Access to products and services must be open to all” say S&D Euro MPs
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Today, the Socialists and Democrats secured a majority on an ambitious proposal aiming at improving access to a wide range of products and services for people with disabilities, the Accessibility Act. Thanks to the Socialists and Democrats, the rules will have a broad scope, applying to people with temporary functional limitations such as pregnant women.
S&D Group negotiator Olga Sehnalová MEP said:
“Today, there are 80 million people in Europe with disabilities. In the coming years, with the ageing of the European population, there will be even more people who will have difficulties in many member states in accessing basic services such as computers, smartphones, ATM and ticketing machines.
“That is why we led the fight in the European Parliament for an ambitious European Accessibility Act. Access to products and services must be granted to all, including people with temporary functional limitations such as pregnant women or elderly people.
“Service providers must also ensure that their public spaces are accessible. They must do so in the construction of new buildings or the renovation of existing infrastructures.
“We want to show that Europe can improve the quality of life of millions of our citizens and contribute to their full involvement in society.”
S&D Group spokesperson for the internal market committee, Nicola Danti MEP added:
“The European Parliament, under pressure from the Socialists and Democrats, has set the tone with this proposal. We want ambitious rules which should allow better access for people with disabilities and functional limitations in the EU. It is our duty to address this important challenge for our society.
"We hope that the Council will follow our lead on such a crucial file for the well-being of our citizens. As Socialists and Democrats, we will keep fighting for a fairer and more inclusive Accessibility Act.”
Note to editors:
In December 2015, the European Commission submitted a directive on accessibility requirements for products and services. The Accessibility Act is a horizontal EU law covering a wide range of products and services such as computers, consumer telephone equipment, self-service terminals and a range of online and offline services, including transport, banking services and e-commerce.
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