Finally, they tell us that legislation on its own is not enough. That the European Union has a responsibility to help partners within the Member States to learn from the good practice which already exists across the Union. I set out in December last year in Vienna my ideas about how we might use the new Article 13 of the Treaty. I said that I was thinking of a package of three proposals. First, a framework Directive that would deal with all grounds of discrimination in employment, complementing the existing Directives on Equal Treatment for Women and Men.
Employment is the area where all forms of discrimination exist.
And it is what constitutes for most people in the European Union the main guarantee for social inclusion, for full participation in economic, social and cultural life and for the enjoyment of basic human rights and freedoms. Second, a Directive dealing specifically with discrimination on grounds of racial and ethnic origin. I said this should go beyond the workplace into areas such as education, access to goods and services, social protection, culture and sport. For these are the areas where people from minority cultures experience discrimination every day of their lives. Third, I said we would almost certainly want to propose action to strengthen co-operation with Member States and civil society.