Anti-racism: Vice-President Jourová and Commissioner Dalli speak at a conference on equality data in the EU

Today, Vice-President Jourová and Commissioner Dalli are participating in the Roundtable on Equality Data, where they will discuss the importance of ethnic and racial equality data in shaping national and EU equality policy. Vice-President Jourová, who will give the closing speech, will say: “We cannot turn a blind eye to the most marginalised people in our society. Only with comparable and reliable data, our policies will be able to ensure full inclusion and protection of all EU citizens equally. We need a common standard, which can be used equally by all Member States. To lead by example, the Commission will collect data on the diversity of its staff for the first time.” Commissioner Dalli, opening the conference, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic fueled discrimination and violence against minority groups, which extent we are unable to properly quantify. This confirms that, without evidence in the form of equality statistics, it is impossible to track progress towards equality. The absence of comparable and regular data on equality and non-discrimination prevents us from reaching out to the most vulnerable in our society, and dampens the incisiveness of our responses to current forms of discrimination.” An important element of the Anti-Racism Action Plan, the Roundtable will gather national experts as well as representatives from the Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) and the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) among others. During the event, the participants will discuss the reasons why collection of equality data is important, how to improve such collection and the use of ethnic and racial equality data. The roundtable will be web-streamed. More information about the event is available online and details about the Anti-Racism Action Plan can be found on the website.