A collective of associations and trade unions is challenging in court the 'Brussels Digital' ordinance, which aims to fully digitise public services. Critics argue the text threatens to exclude a large part of the population from accessing vital services.
A total of 24 Brussels civil society organisations have taken the 'Brussels Digital' ordinance to the Constitutional Court. The ordinance, approved in February this year, signifies the start of Brussels' profound digital transformation. The aim is to make life easier for citizens, but those opposed to it warn the text also threatens to exclude part of the population from accessing these services such as social assistance or civil registry.
"In the Brussels-Capital Region, studies have shown that populations from the 'poor crescent' are at high risk of facing digital exclusion," said Els Keytsman, the director of equal opportunities centre Unia, one of the associations taking the ordinance to court. Almost 40% of Brussels residents experience difficulties with digital systems, while 70% of low-skilled Brussels residents are digitally vulnerable.
Unia is not against digitisation per se, but it fears certain vulnerable groups, such as people with disabilities, the elderly and low-skilled Brussels residents, may lose access to essential services. "Without the intervention of the Constitutional Court, vulnerable people will become even more vulnerable."
Continued physical services
The conflict centres around Article 13 of the ordinance, which is the main subject of appeal. It states that physical counters and telephone services must be maintained alongside digital channels, but an additional provision allows authorities to remove these services if they cost too much, without clearly defining what exactly those "disproportionate burdens" entail.
The associations and unions in question argued that this creates uncertainty and violates the Constitution because it creates discrimination between citizens based on their digital skills. They are therefore calling for more explicit provisions requiring governments to maintain physical counters and other non-digital alternatives, and for passages that are not sufficiently explicit to be replaced by articles with a clear and detailed description of alternatives to digital provisions.
"We must not forget that public services are a form of collective wealth, a capital that must be accessible to all," said Lazaros Goulios, union representative for the unemployed at ACVBrussels. "All we ask is that administrations guarantee a humane and personalised reception for everyone who needs it."
He added that employees in administrations should be at the service of others and in contact with others. "Full digitisation undermines the core of their work."
