I am not sure if people have seen this update from the European
Disability Forum.
As I understand it - this agreement has still to be passed into EU Law
and would then need transposition into UK law, but still it seems an
extremely important first step given the Government organisations now
supporting it.
I copy it below. Apologies if this has already been forwarded.
David Griffith
AGREEMENT ON THE WEB ACCESSIBILITY DIRECTIVE
EDF welcomes the agreement reached last night among the EU institutions
(Parliament, Council and Commission) on the proposed Directive on web
accessibility. It is a crucial milestone to achieve an inclusive digital
society, in which 80 million persons with disabilities will be able to
participate on equal basis with others. Public websites and apps should
no longer exclude anyone.
14 March 2016 |Based on the article of MEP Dita Charanzová, Parliament’s
rapporteur of the web accessibility Directive, and the Commission’s
press release, EDF is delighted to announce that the main demands and
expectations of the disability movement for this crucial piece of
legislation have been listened to and taken on board. Once the final
text is made public, we hope for a swift approval from the Parliament
and Council, and a rapid and effective transposition and implementation
at national level.
This legislation is a great achievement for persons with disabilities:
all public sector bodies’ websites and mobile applications (apps) will
be made accessible, including the electronic documents and multimedia.
In cases when they are not made accessible, public websites will need to
explain why, in a mandatory accessibility statement. Citizens will have
a mechanism to request the content they could not access. Regular
monitoring and reporting by Member States have also been agreed, which
is indispensable for the success of this legislation.
During more than three years of advocacy work, EDF in collaboration with
its members, as well as other civil society organisations and partners,
have pushed hard for improving the original Commission’s proposal
presented in December 2012, which only included 12 public services on
websites and very soft enforcement measures. Thanks to the collaboration
with the Parliament and the Council, a truly future proof and meaningful
Directive can be approved in the coming months, making a real change for
persons with disabilities.
Yannis Vardakastanis, President of EDF:"Accessibility is a Human Rights
issue. It is a condition for participation in society, for education,
for employment, and for access to public services. This Directive is an
important step in promoting the rights of persons with disabilities
within the EU. The EU, and all EU members states should make all of
their public services accessible, including those delivered through the
web, including through apps. This Directive provides for a harmonised
way to do this within the EU, and will assist the EU, and its member
states in meeting their obligations under the UN Convention on the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities".
Unfortunately some exemptions will remain in the Directive, such as
public broadcasters’ websites and live audiovisual streaming, and
therefore EDF will need to continue working with its national members
for a correct transposition at national level. Additionally, we will
need to ensure that relevant and complementary EU legislation, such as
the European Accessibility Act and the revision of the Audiovisual Media
Service Directive will properly address what is not covered by the Web
Accessibility Directive.
Check out EDF's campaign for web accessibility
Contact EDF: Alejandro Moledo| New Technologies and Innovation officer|
alejandro.moledo@xxxxxxxxxxxx <mailto:alejandro.moledo@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
<mailto:alejandro.moledo@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
