Meeting of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO)&nbsp;in the EP in Brussels. MEPs vote on the accessibility requirements for products and services. Statement by Morten L&Oslash;KKEGAARD (ALDE, DK), rapporteur. Anna Maria CORAZZA BILDT, Vice-Chair, opens the vote:&nbsp;36 votes,&nbsp;19 in favour,&nbsp;0 against,&nbsp;17 abstentions.

Brussels

Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection

statement

meeting

vote

LØKKEGAARD, Morten (Renew, DK)

fight against discrimination on the basis of disability (T)

consumers' protection (T)

CORAZZA BILDT, Anna Maria (EPP, SE)

Accessibility requirements for products and services: extracts from the vote and statement by Morten LØKKEGAARD (ALDE, DK), rapporteur

Arrival of Morten L&Oslash;KKEGAARD (ALDE, DK), rapporteur

Opening of the vote by Anna Maria CORAZZA BILDT, Vice-Chair

Final electronic vote/adopted - Anna Maria CORAZZA BILDT, Vice-Chair - Voted: 36 - In favor: 19- Against: 0 - Abstention: 17 (Applause)

SOUNDBITE (English), Morten L&#216;KKEGAARD (ALDE, DK), Rapporteur, I think that today we made a big step forward in the right direction, that's to say to enhance possibilities for disabled people to actually participate in society, to be better acquainted to actually join websites, to join all sorts of machinery; I think this is mostly needed. The disability organisations have fought for this for two decades now, so I think it's the right step forward.

SOUNDBITE (English), Morten L&#216;KKEGAARD (ALDE, DK), Rapporteur, What I've been most focusing on in my work with this report is to have an online environment that's actually working also for people with disabilities. I think what is needed is this e-economy that we are actually moving rapidly into right now, I think it's key for every citizen to be able to work with and to buy via websites and since this is the Internal Market Committee it makes a lot of sense to us to actually prepare for the internal market online beta, to have the companies making their websites accessible to people with disabilities. I think this is the prior step, this is the big step forward.