Brussels, 02/12/2005 (Agence Europe) - European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities Vladimir Spidla presented the Commission's communication during the conference organised on 1 December by the Commission and the European Disability Forum (EDF) on the theme “living together in society”. The communication was on the situation of disabled people in the enlarged EU and the action plan 2006-2007. In order to improve the lives of around 50 million people suffering from disabilities in the EU, the Commission suggests SMEs should be made more aware of the problem of disability, and that the European Social Fund (ESDF) should be revised in order to verify how it can support the employment, training and equal opportunities of disabled people. For the period 2006-2007, the Commission priority is to encourage activity, providing access for quality support and care services for disabled people, and fostering accessibility for all. Mr Spidla personally pledged not to forget people living with disabilities and recalled that, in 2006, all Member States are to ban discrimination based on disability (Directive 2000/78/EC: general framework for equal opportunities in employment). Urging for inclusion, he said that “'living together' is not a slogan but an investment in the future - because inclusion makes it possible to rise to the challenges of demography and increased diversity within our societies; it is what makes it possible to promote equal opportunities”. The president of the European Disability Forum, Iannis Vardakastanis, stressed the importance of allowing every single individual to make his/her own choice, and felt that people living with disabilities should not be forgotten when confined to specialised institutions against their wishes (he called them “invisible citizens who, very often, are persons without rights”). Speaking to the press, Mr Vardakastanis called for such institutions to be phased out. “We need action but this means a legal base and resources”, he added, in perfect agreement with Vladimir Spidla. The Commission announced a communication for the first half of 2006 on changes due to population ageing, especially when it comes to the situation of disabled people.