Overview
The file concerns the European Parliament's own-initiative report titled "Advancing towards a care society: addressing the gender care gap" (2025/2039(INI)). The procedure is ongoing, with the current EP status being "Awaiting committee decision" and an indicative plenary sitting date set for 27 April 2026. This analysis is based on a consolidated summary of amendments to the European Care Strategy report, which details the political groups' positions, and a report overview noting the complete overhaul of the draft report.
Legislative timeline
The procedural narrative indicates the file was referred to the responsible parliamentary committees on 13 February 2025. A committee report was tabled on 1 September 2025, with committee amendments also tabled on 30 September 2025. The current status is awaiting a committee decision at first reading. The next scheduled step is an indicative plenary sitting date on 27 April 2026.
Institutional handling
In the European Parliament, the file is jointly handled by the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality. On the Commission side, the lead Directorate-General is EMPL (Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion), under Commissioner Roxana Mînzatu. The relevant Council configuration is the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO).
Stakeholder reactions
Stakeholder engagement with policymakers has been documented, with five meetings held between distinct organisations and Members of the European Parliament. The organisations involved were Asociación de Empresas de Servicios para la Dependencia (AESTE), AWO Bundesverband e.V., the European Cancer Organisation, the European Federation for Family Employment & Home Care (Fédération européenne des emplois de la famille), and the European Association of Service providers for Persons with Disabilities. No meetings with Commissioners or Commission staff were recorded in the provided data.
The consolidated summary of amendments reveals deep ideological divides among political groups, reflecting broader stakeholder debates. A progressive bloc comprising The Left, Greens/EFA, and S&D groups advocates for transformative change, including significantly increased public investment, binding EU measures, and a rights-based approach to eradicate gender inequalities in care. The Left and Greens/EFA specifically call for a shift from market-based to public care systems. The Renew group aligns with this bloc on strengthening gender equality measures but often with a more pragmatic focus on accessibility and tailored solutions. The EPP group occupies a centre-right, reformist position, acknowledging the gendered nature of care and supporting the formalisation of care work and models involving private actors, but stopping short of endorsing the most prescriptive mandates. A conservative bloc formed by the ECR and NI groups strongly opposes prescriptive EU gender equality targets, emphasising national competence, traditional family values, and concepts like "gender complementarity."
The most contested aspects, as outlined in the summary, are the role of the EU versus member state competence, the approach to achieving gender equality in care, the desired model for care provision (from universal public service to family-centric), and the methods for formalising care work. The report overview indicates a complete overhaul of the initial draft report, with all original articles deleted and replaced entirely by Parliament modifications, though the analysis of key provisions states that no substantive textual amendments were made by the plenary, meaning the final report reflects the committee's draft precisely.