WRITTEN QUESTION E-2728/99 by Thierry La Perriere (UEN) to the Commission. Subsidies for the publication of two brochures entitled Equality for Lesbians and Gay Men and Égaux en droit.
Date: 2000-01-18
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Austria, EU financing, discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, family policy, public awareness campaign

C 303 E/100

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

24.10.2000

(2000/C 303 E/094)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2728/99

by Thierry La Perriere (UEN) to the Commission

(18 January 2000)

Subject: Subsidies for the publication of two brochures entitled (cid:145)Equality for Lesbians and Gay Men(cid:146) and

(cid:145)(cid:201)gaux en droit(cid:146)

In 1998 the Commission provided funding for the publication of two brochures by ILGA (International
Lesbian and Gay Association) Europe, one entitled (cid:145)Equality for Lesbians and Gay Men(cid:146), which was
published in June 1998, and the other, (cid:145)(cid:201)gaux en droit(cid:146), published in November 1998.

(cid:129) To which budget line was the cost of publishing these brochures charged?

(cid:129) Does the Commission intend to provide similar funding for publications on all other sexual habits?

(cid:129) How much funding did it provide over the same period for the publication of documents seeking to

uphold and promote the family?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(2 March 2000)

In 1997 the Commission co-financed a project submitted by the International lesbian and gay association
(ILGA) in the framework of a call for projects under budget line B3-4101 dealing with civil dialogue. The
amount of the Commission subsidy was € 35 635. The project also received co-financing from the
Austrian Federal ministry for labour, health and social affairs and the Austrian Federal ministry for
women(cid:146)s affairs and consumer protection.

As part of the project, ILGA researched and produced a report on the legal and social situation concerning
homosexuality in all Member States, including data on legislation and social policy aimed at protecting
lesbians and gay men from discrimination. In order to strengthen links and develop the civil dialogue
between ILGA-Europe and other non-governmental organisations (NGO) working with social and human
rights issues, the findings were also presented and discussed with other NGOs working at European level.

The information contained in the report also provided a contribution to the preparations for Community
action to implement Article 13 (ex Article 6a) of the EC Treaty which prohibits discrimination on six
different grounds, including sexual orientation.

Under the same call for projects, the Commission also contributed € 34 294 to a project presented by the
Confederation of family organisations in the Community (Coface), for a series of seminars between
organisations working in the family sector and other experts to focus on a range of social protection
issues, including childcare, family benefits, health care, long-term care and help at home, as well as other
themes to be addressed at the 1998 European social policy forum. This lead to the formulation of
proposals on the part of Coface and the publication of a report.

In the same period, the Commission supported other activities related to the issues of family and children
through budget line B3-4108 (cid:129) Measures in favour of the family and children. The amount dedicated to
these activities was, for 1997, € 2,38 million.