EU Strategy for equality between men and women post-2015

13.7.2015

Question for written answer E-011272-15
to the Commission
Rule 130
Ruža Tomašić (ECR)

In its resolution of 9 June 2015 on the EU Strategy for equality between women and men post-2015 Parliament asked the Commission to ensure that European development cooperation follows an approach based on human rights, with particular emphasis on gender equality, training for women, combating all forms of violence against women, and eradicating child labour; it maintained that universal access to health, especially sexual and reproductive health and the rights associated with it, are a fundamental human right.

Parliament also called on the Commission to assist Member States in ensuring high-quality geographically appropriate and readily accessible services in the areas of sexual and reproductive rights and, moreover, safe and legal abortion and contraception, as well as general healthcare.

From the legal point of view, how does the Commission intend to address the concept of ‘associated rights’ in connection with ‘sexual and reproductive health and the associated rights’?

According to the Commission’s interpretation, is abortion included among those ‘associated rights’?

Given that it has clearly made the point on two occasions that, by virtue of the subsidiarity principle, abortion is a matter to be dealt with solely by Member States, has Parliament, by adopting the above resolution, infringed that Treaty principle?