Employment and Social Affairs Council in Brussels today. This was also the first Council meeting with the new EU Commission!
🔹The ministers approved conclusions on women’s and girls’ mental health by promoting gender equality. This involves for example including a gender perspective in mental health policies, combat all forms of violence, and the implementation of recent equal treatment legislation. The importance of sexual and reproductive health and rights is also highlighted in the conclusions, as well as the impact of unequal treatment, including on the ground of gender identity, can have on the population’s mental health, in particular for women and girls.
🔹Ministers held a discussion on solutions to demographic challenges. Sweden believes that with a population in the EU who lives longer and has more healthy years, we also need to create conditions for older people to be able to work longer. In addition, developed care services for children and older people are also of great importance to facilitate the combination of family and working life.
The aspect of gender equality was present throughout these topics for discussion.
Paulina Brandberg, Minister for Gender Equality and Working Life, and Anna Tenje, Minister for Older People and Social Security, represented Sweden.
In the margins of the meeting, the ministers also had several bilateral discussions, including with the Executive Vice President Mînzatu, Commissioner Lahbib, Polish ministers Agnieszka Dziemianowicz-Bąk and Katarzyna Kotula and French minister Paul Christophe.