kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
that includes the obligation for employers public or private to make the necessary adaptations enabling all to work on an equal basis.
in the end we all share the objective of a europe where all people can fully enjoy their human rights and fundamental freedoms.
that is also why i welcome your comprehensive and valuable recommendations.
i am confident that you will also contribute to reaching an agreement on this important proposal in due time.
this commission is committed to job creation and employment opportunities for all people.
the commission is committed to following up on the recommendations.
we need to look at our own institutions and pay attention to our own employees with disabilities by providing the support and protection that they and their families need and by ensuring the accessibility of our own venues.
your report provides practical and useful input.
as was highlighted in your report we continue to provide financial support for organisations representing a variety of disabilities at european level and to work on a daily basis with them.
significant inequalities persist regarding the participation and opportunities of people with disabilities in our society and our economy.
to break down barriers in the daily lives of people with disabilities i have put forward and presented here in plenary in december two thousand and fifteen a legislative proposal for a european accessibility act.
in addition only actions which help to establish the conditions for independent living should be supported. empowering people with disabilities means that they should not live in institutions.
we cannot afford to wait forever and neither can our citizens with disabilities.
but the article continues to this end states parties undertake to adopt all appropriate legislative administrative and other measures for the implementation of the rights.
it took the council four years to accept web accessibility and the speed which is being applied to the web accessibility act is regrettable.
we have agreed to ensure and promote these rights.
so commissioner i encourage you to stress this fact to the council.
our role here is as legislators as is that of the commission and in that context we have to ensure that all legislation is disability proofed both current and future regulation.
the rights of persons with disabilities must be mainstreamed in our work here;
once we have that mind set i believe we are on the right road. there are excellent proposals in this report but i shall just highlight three which i think are of crucial importance.
so the phrase nothing about us without us' was taken seriously by the rapporteur.
the report takes a rights based approach and in order to vindicate those rights we need adequate legislation.
three countries including my own ireland have still to ratify but i hope we will do so by the end of the year.
but we need to find some solution to the fact that the anti discrimination directive which would ensure equal treatment outside the labour market is stuck in council.
we also see that the principle of stakeholder consultation is woven right throughout this report.
well the process of drawing up the document was as important as its content and in that context people with disabilities were involved in all committee meetings which were accessible.
today we are discussing parliament's response to the crpd concluding observations as to how we are implementing the convention and in this context i want to thank our colleague helga stevens who has been an excellent rapporteur.
first of all support for independent living secondly equal opportunities for employment and thirdly equal access to the digital society.
in this context also i want to agree with my colleague richard howitt when he asks the commissioner to go above and beyond what is already in the pipeline.
this would be an efficient way of ensuring respect for their rights and civil society is particularly important in this respect.
we must ensure that the implementation plan of agenda two thousand and thirty the paris climate agreement and the sendai framework for disaster risk reduction is being carried out in line with the convention on the rights of persons with disabilities.
this is especially true for disabled women and girls.
we also have to take into account the pledge to leave no one behind which is in the remit of agenda.
finally the convention on the rights of persons with disabilities is central in working towards nothing about us without us' and this must equally be fulfilled in eu external action. this report and the rapporteur helga stevens are an important embodiment of that principle.
i would like to highlight the importance of giving support to the organisation and participation of persons with disabilities in the process of drafting legislation in partner countries.
mr president it is crucial to fulfil the rights of persons with disabilities in the european union's development and humanitarian action.
i think the question was about future legislation and whether there is some way that people can vindicate their rights in court because that is sometimes the only way that people can vindicate their rights.
well obviously with any european legislation that is ratified by member states people with disabilities or other persons can always vindicate those rights in court.
for example we saw a case some years back where a woman who had a child with disabilities in the uk was able to vindicate her rights as to if you like secondhand discrimination in the ecj because of the fact that she was treated unfairly because she had a child with disabilities. actually indirect discrimination is the proper term for that. so that is an example of how somebody was able to vindicate their rights in court because of the legislation that we had here in the parliament.
funded systems.
it brings us a step closer to achieving equal rights and opportunities for people with disabilities.
it highlights amongst other things elements related to employment and education which are particularly important if we are to help people achieve independence and realise their full potential. i especially encourage further development of incentives for employers who offer jobs to people with disabilities. opportunities need to be created so that everyone can become as independent as possible and participate in all domains of life. if these issues are not addressed they will only result in greater social exclusion and poverty and we cannot allow that.
i believe that limited access to education for individuals with disabilities is bound to have a negative impact later on in their lives and limit the choices and possibilities at a later stage. so i call for provisions that will help people with disabilities participate in courses which will enhance their competences and skills including participation
there is still a lot that needs to be done but we must remember that onesizefitsall solutions are not the answer.
we need to focus on the diversity of problems that people with disabilities face on a daily basis.
i use the english language today not my mother tongue maltese to raise awareness that some people on the autistic spectrum in my country learn only one language english but in a dual language country this should not continue to impede their educational development.
i want to nudge policy makers to stop looking at disability and to focus on the person.
this report gives us an opportunity to show our citizens that we value the potential and the ability of each one of us.
since culture is the narrative of our lifestyle the way we live what we do every single day let's make sure that all persons even those whom the environment disables have space to participate.
mr president firstly this is a human rights convention and it is right that the european union's human rights mechanisms are used to support its implementation.
secondly i say to our friend ms thyssen and i think we will be working even more closely in the next period do not just do what you would have done anyway in the disability strategy. you and your colleagues do some good things and we support you in doing it but the convention is a different legal obligation for us in the european union and we have to show that we are acting differently because of that legal obligation and not simply redress what we would have done anyway and pretend it is to do with the convention. we have to do better than that.
finally i was involved in the lobbying for the convention.
i am deeply proud of that and people with disabilities were there and their organisations it was fantastic but when the review came out the commission did not undertake a formal consultation with people with disabilities and their organisations they did informally but not formally.
i want to ask you when it comes to the next review conference every time you send a delegation to the un to discuss the convention on the rights of people with disabilities to involve disabled people involve disabled people's organisations nothing about us without us. i know you say those words.
i would also like to highlight the support from my colleagues at the disability intergroup and i am very glad that we have commissioner thyssen with us today making disability a priority at commissioner level and i hope it stays that way. the involvement of people with disabilities was crucial during the whole process and we should not forget that the convention puts new obligations on the eu.
i can only reiterate that freedom of movement especially for workers is also a right for people with disabilities and this also includes full and equal access to the erasmus programme. with regard to the exercise of political rights this is just one example of where people with disabilities
changes must be made so that people with disabilities can fully exercise their right to vote and to stand as candidates during elections.
again i would like to mention the disability intergroup who signed many amendments and were actively involved in the whole process of the report.
this cross party support from all eu countries is a significant indicator of how important the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities is everywhere and not only in one or two areas or regions.
madam president i will do my utmost to make sure this remains not just a piece of paper but can have a real impact on person with disabilities here at the european institutions and across europe. remember this is about human rights
not more not less.
so we all agree how important it is that the un convention on the rights of persons with disabilities will be fully implemented and that all eu and member state legislation will be brought into line with the convention.
access to justice is not just about fair legislation it is about legal procedures which must be adjusted to the needs of persons with disabilities inter alia through eu judicial training programmes.
to achieve this systematic and close consultations between representative organizations of persons with disabilities policy makers businesses and other relevant stakeholders must be initiated.
furthermore the establishment implementation monitoring and evaluation of all policies related to education training culture sport and youth should be conducted while taking into account the outcomes of those consultations. like that we can ensure that the real needs and requests of people with disabilities will be addressed.
further efforts are needed in order to facilitate and enhance the participation of people with special needs in different mobility programmes.
mr president the implementation of the un convention on the rights of persons with disabilities is exactly the sort of thing that the eu institutions should be working on.
i want to commend the rapporteur and the other meps who were working on this file and i look forward to working with them in the future.
i am happy that the institutions of the eu have acknowledged their shortcomings in relation to persons with disabilities.
that will damage those who are trying to get access to those rights for people with a disability. i want to say that i and my party sinn fin as a delegation here in the gue ngl group will challenge that if it is the outcome of the contest that is taking place at the moment because we cannot have a situation
thousand and fourteen to two thousand and twenty this is on the basis of the national indicative programmes proposed by the delegations in more than fifty countries.
i can tell you my story.
these are the impediments that have been created in turning assets into wealth.
can realise the potential of the value of the land and the businesses that they have.
this understanding made what we now call the united states of america the richest country in the world.
millions and millions of businesses that are lining the streets of developing countries as we go from the airport to the capital city or hundreds of thousands of slums all those are unregistered non legal and not transferable not asset realisable and i am very glad that the european commissioner for budgets is sitting here listening to this because he will understand this more than anybody in the commission.
for example it takes more than three hundred days to register a business in peru.
to register businesses.
the legal property system transformed natural assets land houses small businesses into capital.
it takes over one hundred and eighty days to open a bank account in burkina faso.
how did they do it? they understood how to form capital.
the asset potential can be unlocked forming investments shareholdings equity debentures mortgages insurance.
but around the world where we try and help poor developing countries when we examine their structures they do not have any of these capabilities that can turn assets into securitisable capital and when we look at the
or we engage in better focusing our aid to reach those in most need.
we should bear in mind the very difficult context we are working in where we face two options either we suspend all aid programmes;
i took good note of your calls and proposals to be taken on board when programming the national indicative programme for eritrea under the eleventh european development fund in order to better assess the needs of the people and not the government and to better address the root causes of migration.
we have got to be very careful where we apply this foreign aid and what we ask for it from this country.
it then wants to tackle migration into europe but implements harmful policies.
but the benign reality is that the eu suffers from its own hypocrisy and delusion on what development aid might achieve.
and all too often sanctions are applied that harm the actual innocent and do not deal with the guilty.
mr president only nine days ago my colleague nathan gill stood up in plenary in strasbourg and said that the developing world needs trade not aid and this week we have been given a case study that proves precisely that point.
the people need jobs they need job security and most of all they need an opportunity to escape poverty. foreign aid just does not tackle that.
only this week the african economic output report stated that eritrea's gdp has gone up to.
it throws money around without any accountability.
to the region. recent developments in yemen are of particular concern and may have serious implications for the stability of the region and of eritrea which is located just across the red sea from yemen. the eu support for the population enables people to be less vulnerable to radicalisation and eu aid should thus also be seen as contributing to peace and stability
in eritrea. as regards the programming of the aid under the eleventh european development fund discussions are ongoing. it is proposed that eu development aid will support social and economic development including through increasing access to renewable energy in order to achieve tangible results for
of origin. by improving the livelihoods of the people of eritrea development aid is addressing and will continue to address the root causes
courts. our aid is provided through projects and not through budget
in eritrea. in addition support for governance related activities that would promote sustainable economic growth is also provided for. apart from the eu cooperation financed from the european development fund the european union has also allocated thematic funds in order to support and build the capacity of formal and informal civil society organisations active in the areas of social cultural and economic
poverty. there is no support to the central government
traffickers. that is why european union development projects currently being implemented under the tenth european development fund in the amount
the population and improving living conditions. lastly engagement contributes to peace and stability in the country and the wider region. some minor progress has recently been achieved for example in december two thousand and fourteen the government of eritrea announced that the previously indefinite duration of national service would be limited to eighteen months for new recruits. this is an important decision since the open ended duration of national service was a major push factor in migration. the decision now needs to be implemented. we must do what we can to alleviate the huge stress upon eritrea's population. they are facing a problematic food security situation and a lack of economic prospects and opportunities.
it is in our interests that we tackle these problems on the ground.
even where our policies fail we have to keep trying and improving the lives of those who are affected so badly.
first if we want to create a better regulatory framework progress is in the hands of member states in particular they can contribute to changing our current public procurement directives and rules.
private security companies as you mentioned are sometimes essential to safety including that of european diplomatic and humanitarian operations in the world.
the private security companies do not operate in a vacuum and the european union was the first international organisation to sign up to the montreux document promoted by switzerland and the red cross about obligations and good practices for private security companies.
in their role as security providers they must always respect the highest international standards on human rights.
in particular we need to assess better which services can be outsourced and which have to remain under the sole responsibility of professional armed forces.
a stronger legal framework for private security companies is in everybody's interest it is certainly in the european union's interest so that they can contribute in the right manner to the security of many people from diplomatic staff to humanitarian workers around the world.
as for the external action service all our potential security contractors have to be signatories of the international code of conduct and our delegations closely monitor the implementation of their contractual obligations.
second the work of security contractors is evolving fast with a growing role for drones cyber and civilian military operations. our systems of safeguards must be continuously updated and we therefore need the cooperation not only of member states and academics but also of legal experts and ngos.
finally let me conclude by saying that it has been more than ten years since public opinion began to hear about security contractors.
my third and final comment is about cooperation between the public and private sectors.
on this point the european union is fully in line with the international committee of the red cross which means we consider that hiring private security companies is legitimate and can be necessary for instance they can have an important role in protecting aid workers or people living in conflict areas but of course these companies are not exempt from the observance of international humanitarian law.
it is now essential that we continue to work for this framework to be expanded and especially to be universalised.
i am pleased with the increased recognition of the relevance of the un guiding principles on business and human rights and their implementation. their value was recognised in the european union council conclusion on business and human rights adopted last year. i would like to focus briefly on three points about the work ahead.
first institutional changes. as was rightly mentioned in the report these are very much needed to remove institutional barriers and bias. in science men and women may have the same qualifications but they often do not have the same chances to succeed because of persisting discrimination and stereotypes concerning the role and capacities of women. there are still practices and attitudes that produce inequalities.
to this end in the european research area research institutions are encouraged to adopt fullyfledged gender equality plans which include a detailed account of the state of play on gender equality within the organisation measures to address existing bias setting targets and monitoring of progress.
it reflects well the current state of play and proposes concrete ideas to move forward.
in horizon two thousand and twenty our framework programme for research and innovation these institutional changes are clearly pursued but we need to do more and we need to do better.
i am glad that the european parliament is on board as its help and its role is crucial.
women are still under represented in decision making and the phenomenon is not self correcting.
we will then assess the need for possible further measures.
the commission monitors the correct application by member states of existing eu legislation on gender equality. in research we also need to address the specificities of the sector with concrete actions both at the eu and national level.
the commission will take good note of all the recommendations made in the report.
translating national equality legislation into effective action is one key priority.
it provides a toolkit of concrete measures to tackle pay inequality and the gender
the european parliament the member states and the social partners will have a very important role to play in this process.
before concluding i would like to mention three important initiatives on gender equality.
we know that national laws strategies and incentives have a positive impact in triggering actions by research institutions. this is important as research institutions are the ones ultimately responsible for implementing institutional changes through gender equality
the proposal is currently supported by a majority of member states and once adopted by the parliament and the council it will pave the way for further progress on gender equality.
two thousand and sixteen in this endeavour the commission would like to underline the need for a full collaboration from the member states in order to produce robust indicators.
second the importance of enforcing the existing regulatory framework on gender equality.
we will now start the consultation process.
the roadmap also states that gaps in cross cutting gender equality legislation at eu and national levels should be addressed.
we need effective implementation and enforcement.
in conclusion both women and men are needed if europe is to achieve its ambitions in ri for the benefit of the whole of society. the commission will continue to do its part but to achieve gender equality the commitment of the european parliament in terms of the policy and financial engagement of the member states remains essential.
in may two thousand and fifteen the council adopted the european research area roadmap and called on the member states and the commission to implement top action priorities through action plans and strategies.
in response to this we see that many european states are choosing to set targets or quotas.
participation of women in decision making is just as important.
pay gap. we look forward to receiving by the end of this year member states' notifications on the national measures taken in accordance with the recommendation.
we need all member states to engage in the same line in the context of the european research area.