Brussels, 31/03/2004 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday the European Parliament approved in Strasbourg by 313 votes in favour, 141 against and 47 abstentions the report by Austrian Social Democrat Christa Prets on the proposal of directive concerning gender equality in accessing goods and services and in the provision of services (consultation: see EUROPE of 19 March, p.12). This new directive, which tackles discrimination in the insurance and private pension sector, gave rise to a lively debate in plenary and is the subject of many amendments, the most important of which concern financial services and the use of gender as a factor in calculating the rate of insurance contributions.
As far as the scope of the new directive is concerned (base: Article 13 of the EC Treaty), the EP considers that it should ban discrimination founded on gender and achieve equality between men and women for access to and provision of all goods and services available to the public, in the public and private sectors. Services should be those which are normally provided against payment and the products should be those which have an economic value, the EP continues, specifying that the directive should apply neither to education nor to the content of the media or advertising, except for advertising on the conditions governing access to goods and the provision of services.
As far as insurance and other financial services are concerned, the EP considers that the gender-based differentiation of premiums and payments for insurance products (including pregnancy risks) is discriminatory given that gender is a factor on which it is not possible to act (…). Tariff differences depending on the different risk profiles must be imputable to the behaviour and choice of individuals, for example, eating habits, smoking risks, alcohol consumption, and the professional activity carried out, etc.
Member States have two years in which to transpose this directive into national law, except for the insurance sector and other financial services. If difficulties are encountered in implementation of the measures necessary to achieve gender equality, the EP grants a further four-year period, which brings to six years the maximum period for applying these anti-discrimination measures in the Member States. Under such circumstances, the Member States concerned immediately inform the Commission and transmit a regular report on progress made in order to overcome these difficulties. Finally, given the disparities between Member States and the risk of competition distortion arising during this transitional period, the Member States must forward to the Commission each year a report on progress made with a view to eliminating the use of actuarial factors based on gender.
We would also point out that the EP has changed the title of the directive which will henceforth be a directive that implements equality between men and women in the access of goods and services and in provision of goods and services. (An EP press release insists on equality instead of principle of equal treatment and explains that, in conformity with Article 2 of the draft European Constitution, values such as democracy, freedoms and human rights above all go from the status of "principles" to that of "rights". This must naturally also concern equality between men and women).
For the content of the directive proposed by former European Commissioner Anna Diamantopoulou and the considerable polemic that this has caused, see EUROPE of 6 and 11 November 2003 and 20 February 2004.