European Union adopts two Directives strengthening Equality Bodies

Today, the Council of the European Union adopted two Directives on binding standards for national Equality Bodies, marking an important step towards equality for all across the EU.

The new legislation will strengthen the role of Equality Bodies by imposing binding standards, notably regarding their competences, independence and resources. The need for such legislation has been highlighted for many years by the work of MPG and of the European network of legal experts in gender equality and non-discrimination (ELN), on the transposition and implementation of the existing EU non-discrimination legal framework.

The non-discrimination country reports of all 27 EU Member States contain detailed information about the current mandate, resources and work of Equality Bodies. These reports demonstrate the wide diversity among the EU Member States in this regard, and the dire need in many countries for increased resources and greater independence, as well as extended competences.   

For decades, MPG has been one of the most active EU-level advocates for comprehensive equality and non-discrimination laws and monitoring structures, as well as being at the core of the creation of the European Network of Equality Bodies. We have been monitoring and informing the developments towards the adoption of these Directives for many years and produced the highly relevant thematic report ‘Equality bodies making a difference‘ in 2018, shortly after the European Commission presented its Recommendation. 

Isabelle Chopin, Director of MPG, said:

“We are delighted about the adoption of the Directives, and we look ahead to the process of their transposition and implementation at the national level. MPG will continue to do its part in ensuring that the full body of EU non-discrimination legislation reaches its aim of ensuring equal rights and opportunities across the EU.“