WRITTEN QUESTION E-2960/01 by Samuli Pohjamo (ELDR) and Mikko Pesälä (ELDR) to the Commission. Promoting the position of people with disabilities.
Date: 2001-10-25
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European social policy, action programme, anti-discriminatory measure, application of EU law, equal treatment, facilities for people with disabilities, integration of people with disabilities, interpretation of the law, job access, labour law, national implementing measure

29.8.2002

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Official Journal of the European Communities

C 205 E/15

Does the Commission believe that it should submit a legally binding proposal which would, when adopted
by the relevant Community authority, oblige Community planes to carry the European symbol?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(29 November 2001)

The Commission shares the Honourable Member’s view that the Union’s logo, i.e. the flag with yellow
stars, helps in a positive manner and in many different contexts to make the European identity known
throughout the world. The Commission is therefore pleased to see a number of airlines displaying the logo
on their aircraft.

However, as the Commission has already pointed out in previous answers, the Commission does not take
the view that the use of the Union’s logo by European airlines should be made compulsory.

Moreover, the use of the logo is in all cases subject to prior authorisation in accordance with the
agreement concluded between the European Community and the Council of Europe which is the legal
owner of the logo.

(2002/C 205 E/015)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2960/01

by Samuli Pohjamo (ELDR) and Mikko Pesälä (ELDR) to the Commission

Subject: Promoting the position of people with disabilities

(25 October 2001)

Article 1 of Council Directive 2000/78/EC (1) of 27 November 2000 states that ‘The purpose of this
Directive is to lay down a general framework for combating discrimination on the grounds of religion or
belief, disability, age or sexual orientation as regards employment and occupation …’. Article 5 of that
directive (Reasonable accommodation for disabled persons) also states that
‘In order to guarantee
compliance with the principle of equal treatment in relation to persons with disabilities, reasonable
accommodation shall be provided. This means that employers shall take appropriate measures, where
needed in a particular case, to enable a person with a disability to have access to, participate in, or advance
in employment, or to undergo training, unless such measures would impose a disproportionate burden on
the employer’. The implementation of this directive is of vital importance because people with disabilities
still suffer from negative attitudes both at work and in society as a whole. On 17 June 1999 the Council
took up a position on this matter when it adopted a resolution (2) in which it urged the Member States to
place particular emphasis on the promotion of employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

How will the implementation of this directive be ensured? In this connection we are interested
1.
particularly in eliminating discrimination against people with disabilities as regards employment and
occupation and in appropriate measures to apply the above-mentioned Article 5.

2. What exactly is meant in Article 5 by ‘unless such measures would impose a disproportionate burden
on the employer’? If an employer has a unilateral right to determine what imposes a disproportionate
burden on him, how is it possible to prevent unjustified discrimination against people with disabilities on
these grounds, for example in a recruitment situation?

3. What are the measures, referred to in Article 26 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU,
designed to ensure the independence, social and occupational integration of disabled people and their
participation in the life of the community? How have these measures been implemented thus far and is
there room for improvement in their implementation?

Are any projects as described above, aimed at improving the position of disabled people, planned in

4.
the near future, and if so, of what kind are they?

(1) OJ L 303, 2.12.2000, p. 16.
(2) OJ C 186, 2.7.1999, p. 3.

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Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(12 December 2001)

1.
According to Article 18 of Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000 establishing a
general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation, Member States shall adopt laws,
regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by 2 December 2003 at
the latest. However, in order to take account of particular conditions, Member States may, if necessary,
have an additional period of three years from 2 December 2003 onwards, to implement provisions of the
Directive on age and disability discrimination.

The Commission has
the
set up a working group of Member States’ officials
implementation of the Directive. The group is primarily intended to facilitate the transposition of the
Directive into national
law by organising a forum for discussion, exchange of information and the
coordination of work.

responsible for

Transposition of the directive into national law will confer directly enforceable rights to protection from
discrimination on grounds of disability among which features the right to redress before a court in case of
unfair discrimination.

For many disabled people, a major barrier to equal opportunity, equal participation or equal performance
at work may be some feature of
the work situation which prevents people with disabilities from
participating on an equal footing.

There can be no exhaustive list of the types of accommodation required to end discrimination against
people with disabilities in employment. Each case will have to be considered in its own circumstances and
on its own merits. Having said that, the twentieth recital to the directive gives some guidance by stating
that ‘appropriate measures should be provided, i.e. effective and practical measures to adapt the workplace
to the disability. For example, adapting premises and equipment, patterns of working time, the distribution
of tasks or the provision of training or integration resources’.

if

Article 5 of

the Directive provides that

the employer can demonstrate that

the proposed
2.
accommodation would cause a disproportionate burden on the operation of his/her business, a failure to
provide accommodation is not discriminatory. The burden of proof should be upon the employer to
demonstrate that a given adjustment would constitute a disproportionate burden, and people with
disabilities are entitled to question such an adjustment. Recital 21 says that ‘to determine whether
measures in question give rise to a disproportionate burden, account should be taken in particular of the
financial and other costs entailed, the scale and financial resources of the organisation or undertaking and
the possibility of obtaining public funding or any other assistance’. What will amount
to a
disproportionate burden will thus be a question of fact to be decided on the merits of the individual case.

Besides

the above-mentioned measures aimed at

3.
the Community is
implementing a number of measures designed to encourage the social and occupational integration of
disabled people. The European Social Fund, which is the principal means by which the Community offers
financial assistance to disabled people, is supporting a wide range of measures including work experience
schemes, temporary sheltered employment and other intermediate labour-market steps, as well as self-
employment and the development of cooperatives for the mentally and severely physically disabled.

tackling discrimination,

Substantial support is also provided through the Community Initiative EQUAL, the aim of which is
transitional cooperation to promote new means of combating all forms of discrimination and inequalities
in connection with the labour market. In addition, a considerable number of projects targeting the needs of
people with disabilities have also been supported through various Community research programmes and
other general initiatives, such as Socrates, Leonardo da Vinci, Health Promotion, Daphne, PHARE, TACIS
etc.

A number of initiatives have also been launched to improve access to premises, transport and new
technologies. These are specifically listed in the Communication of 12 May 2000 entitled ‘Towards a
barrier-free Europe for people with disabilities’ (1).

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The Community action programme to combat discrimination (2001-2006)

(Council Decision
4.
2000/750/EC of 27 November 2000) (2) provides for a range of measures intended to support and
strengthen efforts by the Member States and the Community to draw up effective legislation and policies
to tackle discrimination in the period up until 2006. These measures include activities aimed at making
organisations representing disabled people, and disabled people themselves, better able to fight
the
discrimination to which they are subjected.

Similarly,
in an effort to promote better understanding of disabilities and to help mobilise all parties
involved at all levels, the Commission has proposed that 2003 be declared the ‘European Year of People
with Disabilities’ (3). In particular, the European Year seeks to lay the foundations for further sustainable
progress by informing and educating people and paving the way for new legal and policy developments

(1) COM(2000) 284 final.
(2) OJ L 303, 2.12.2000.
(3) OJ C 240 E, 28.8.2001.

(2002/C 205 E/016)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2966/01

by Graham Watson (ELDR) to the Commission

(25 October 2001)

Subject: Taxi levied on personal belongings moved within Member States

Unrestricted movement of people and goods within the Member States is one of the fundamental
principles of the European Union.

Does the Commission have any plans to investigate payment of taxes on personal belongings moved
between Member States, should Europeans choose to reside elsewhere within the Union?

Would it be possible to ascertain exactly how much has been paid to the Spanish authorities in the form
of import taxes levied in this way?

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(14 December 2001)

As regards personal belongings moved between Member States by European citizens changing residence
from one Member State to another, taxes on ‘importation’ between the Member States have to a large
extent been eliminated through Community legislation, in particular the harmonised VAT and excise duty
systems and, as concerns other consumption taxes, Council Directive 83/183/EEC (1).

The Commission is not aware of any ‘import taxes’ levied by Spain. The Member States themselves are in
the best position to provide information of the kind requested by the Honourable Member.

(1) Council Directive 83/183/EEC of 28 March 1983 on tax exemptions applicable to permanent imports from a
Member State of the personal property of individuals (OJ L 105, 23.4.1983), as last amended by Council Directive
92/12/EEC of 25 February 1992, OJ L 76, 23.3.1992.