Equal treatment between women and men: access to and supply of goods and services

2003/0265(CNS)
The committee adopted the report by Christa PRETS (PES, A) broadly approving the proposal under the consultation procedure, subject to a number of mainly technical and drafting amendments, some of which were intended to align the proposal with existing "equal treatment" directives and the case-law of the Court of Justice. The report also dealt with a number of other issues. Although the directive does not apply to the content of media and advertising, the committee specified that it should apply to advertising of the terms and conditions on which access to goods is granted and services are supplied. MEPs argued that it would be illogical to prohibit discrimination in relation to access to goods and the supply of services but to allow advertising implying that such discrimination is permitted. For the sake of greater clarity, the committee said that it should be explicitly stated in the body of the text that the directive would not prejudice the application of Community law in the field of employment, including provisions relating to occupational pension schemes and social security matters. Lastly, MEPs wanted to tighten up reporting requirements, saying that the Member States should report to the Commission three years after the directive's entry into force and every three years thereafter, rather than every five years as originally proposed. They also wanted the Commission to report back to Parliament and the Council every four years.�