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National protection beyond the two EU anti-discrimination Directives: The grounds of religion and belief, disability, age and sexual orientation beyond employment

final_beyond_employment_en.pdf - Adobe ReaderA new thematic report has been published by the European network of legal experts in the non-discrimination field, entitled ‘National protection beyond the two EU anti-discrimination Directives: The grounds of religion and belief, disability, age and sexual orientation beyond employment’. The purpose of the report, authored by Aileen McColgan who is the expert of the Network for the United Kingdom and a practising lawyer, is to provide a context in which possible legislative change can be discussed with regard to an extension of protection from discrimination beyond the existing EU anti-discrimination Directives. The report thus provides an extensive mapping of existing national regulation of discrimination outside the field of employment on the grounds of religion and belief, disability, age and sexual orientation, and covers the 28 EU Member States as well as the accession candidate countries (FYR of Macedonia, Iceland and Turkey) and the EEA countries (Liechtenstein and Norway).

Based on information provided by the European Network of Legal Experts in the non-discrimination field regarding the level of protection from discrimination provided by national legislation beyond the requirements of the EU anti-discrimination directives, the report demonstrates that there is a great deal of such protection across the countries surveyed. Although there are differences in scope and methodology among the national regulations, the author notes a high level of consistency as regards the extended protection afforded to the relevant grounds beyond the requirements of existing EU law.