Resumen de The European accessibility act and the shadow of the "Social market economy"

Delia Ferri

• This article critically discusses the Directive on the accessibility requirements for products and services, better known as "European Accessibility Act"(EAA), from an EU constitutional perspective. It locates this new legislative intervention within the scope of the "social market economy"ideal set out in art.3(3) of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU). In doing so, this contribution endeavours to revisit the scholarly interpretations of art.3(3) TEU itself and to provide novel insights on its practical implications. The analysis shows that the EAA presents a juxtaposition of market and social goals (broadly conceived). It argues that, while the EAA falls short of the wide-ranging obligations undertaken internationally by the EU under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, it does fulfil the constitutional ideal envisaged in art.3(3) TEU. On the whole, this article contends that the EU has taken on the mandate of the social regulation of capitalism, and that the enactment of the EAA signals an attempt to re-orientation of positive integration in the pursuit of non-economic goals.