Armando Dionisi, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group. – (IT) Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, we have recently seen the latest in a long series of examples of discrimination against a disabled passenger by a low-cost airline. This is a situation which, regrettably, is recurring with worrying regularity and which requires this regulation to be approved urgently.

Thanks to the hard work of the rapporteur, Mr Evans, and to cooperation by the Council and Commission, we have achieved a good compromise which will allow us to approve the regulation at first reading and to have it implemented rapidly. This is an important regulation for disabled and elderly passengers as it guarantees a series of fundamental rights. Firstly, it enshrines the right to assistance free of charge and prohibits any refusal to allow passengers with reduced mobility to embark. It will put an end to abuse and discrimination. Secondly, it identifies the airport operator as the single point of reference with general service responsibility to which passengers can turn, and will also enable those airlines which have hitherto provided high-quality assistance to continue to do so, on condition that they comply with the standards set out in the regulation.

Rules are set for providing uniform assistance for all, irrespective of the size of the airport. Assistance must be guaranteed from the point of arrival outside the airport, not only from the check-in desk as is the case today. Compensation will be payable in the event of loss or damage to wheelchairs and other equipment, and there is provision for mandatory training for staff providing assistance. Information must be available in a form accessible to all and the protection of privacy will be assured. These are fundamental guarantees to protect the right to mobility without discrimination, and it is therefore an important step forward in the defence of human rights, of which the European Parliament is the guarantor.