'IMPROVE EMPLOYMENT PROSPECTS FOR DISABLED PEOPLE!' - LIZ LYNNE

12.00.00am GMT Wed 5th Dec 2007

Improving the employment prospects for disabled people is one of the biggest challenges of our time and the European Union can make real progress in making it happen, according to a West Midlands region Liberal Democrat MEP.

Liz Lynne MEP, Vice-President of the Employment and Social Affairs Committee and Vice-President of the European Parliament's Disability Intergroup, opened a seminar today as part of Disability Awareness Week at the European Parliament, on redressing the social and labour imbalances of people with mental health problems, people with a learning disability and people with disabilities derived from neurological conditions. The seminar was attended by disability NGOs, MEPs and other experts in the field.

Speaking today, Liz said:

"The European Union has already played an important part in adopting the 2000 Employment Framework Directive, a landmark piece of legislation which outlaws discrimination on the grounds of disability, but the challenge now is to implement this fully which has not yet happened.

"One of the main challenges is to tackle the stigma and discrimination that provides a barrier to individuals seeking help and gaining employment.

"It is vital that trade unions, NGO's and employers inform people of their rights under anti-discrimination legislation.

"Sharing best practice is something I see as an absolute priority for the European Union and for Member States and this applies to everything - from prevention, diagnosis, de-stigmatisation, treatment, inclusive employment strategies and the mainstreaming of disability policies.

"Only through more effective exchange of best practice and implementation of the antidiscrimination legislation that we do have, can we start to lower the unacceptably high levels of unemployment among disabled people that sadly represents the current status quo."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

Liz Lynne MEP was the European Parliament's rapporteur on the 2005 United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. She continues to campaign for the convention's signing and ratification. Both Poland and the UK have signed the Convention but they have yet to ratify it and have also failed to sign the vital optional protocol.

Liz Lynne MEP was author of the 2007 joint report for the European Parliament on Social Protection, Social Inclusion and Social Reality Stocktaking which was adopted by the European Parliament earlier this month. The report is the European Parliament's response to the adoption by the European Council in Spring and the European Commission of reports on 'social reality stocktaking'. The Parliament's report comes ahead of the revision of the Lisbon Agenda and the mid term review of social policy. Please find a link to the report: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+REPORT+A6-2007-0400+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN&language=EN