Connect with us

Blindness

#EBU: European Blind Union releases new position paper on European Accessibility Act

SHARE:

Published

8 years ago

on

We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Since 2015, a new regulation on accessibility has been in the making in Brussels. This European Accessibility Act (EAA) aims to harmonize the requirements for accessibility of goods and services. “This act can be a breakthrough,” said European Blind Union (EBU) President Wolfgang Angermann. However, a watering-down of the regulation looms on the horizon. On 1 March, interinstitutional negotiations between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission began. This trilogue, which took place behind closed doors, has clipped the wings of several ambitious initiatives before.

To shape the debates in the Trilogue, EBU publishes today a new Position Paper on the EEA. The European Blind Union represents 30 million blind and partially sighted Europeans, who encounter inaccessibility on a daily basis. “Booking a vacation online, taking the train to work or reading a book for school often pose unsurmountable challenges for us,” explained President Angermann. EBU therefore demands a comprehensive scope for the upcoming regulation as well as clear functional criteria for accessibility. Additionally, EBU demands binding rules on the built environment and a minimization of exemptions and restrictions on the applicability of the EAA.

Read the EBU Position Paper and a point-by-point analysis of the negotiation positions (in English)

EBU is a non-governmental, non-profit making European organisation founded in 1984. It is one of the six regional bodies of the World Blind Union. It protects and promotes the interests of blind and partially sighted people in Europe. It currently operates within a network of national organizations of the visually impaired in 42 European countries.

Share this article:

Share this:
Related Topics:
EU Reporter publishes articles from a variety of outside sources which express a wide range of viewpoints. The positions taken in these articles are not necessarily those of EU Reporter. Please see EU Reporter’s full Terms and Conditions of publication for more information EU Reporter embraces artificial intelligence as a tool to enhance journalistic quality, efficiency, and accessibility, while maintaining strict human editorial oversight, ethical standards, and transparency in all AI-assisted content. Please see EU Reporter’s full A.I. Policy for more information.
Advertisement

Trending