The EU framework of people with disabilities' rights - an intertemporal equilibrium between regulatory and policy paradigms

Taking the challenging balance between international and national law as a starting point, this chapter uses legal and social policy approaches to identify whether and how the current EU framework (a) creates fundamental rights for people with disabilities; (b) supports access of people with disabilities to fundamental rights. The regulation, administration and funding of disability policies is in principle a responsibility of the _U Member States. However, due to the current structure of competences EU bodies have taken a strong position to support the active participation of people with disabilities in society and the economy. In this context, the EU has adopted, and applies as part of its shared and supportive competences, a disability rights framework, which does not create new rights but only supports access to rights established by the UN and national law. This framework is promoted by a complex set of legal instruments and supported by policy machineries.