ABSTRACT
The reorganisation of anti-discrimination legislation and the institutions enforcing such legislation is today a trend which cuts across Europe. The present developments encompass at least three interconnected trends. First, new grounds of discrimination are included in the legal protection against discrimination. Second, the various laws protecting against discrimination on different grounds are increasingly becoming harmonised. Third, there is a tendency towards co-ordinating and merging the different bodies responsible for the enforcement and monitoring of anti-discrimination laws and equality policies. An ‘integrated approach’ to discrimination is emphasised by the European Commission as a necessary step towards providing a more coherent and effective strategy for combating discrimination, allowing for common legal and policy approaches to different grounds and addressing cases of multiple discrimination more effectively.1
