JUSTICE : MEPS RECOMMEND UNION-WIDE RECOGNITION OF INCAPACITY MANDATES.

• Position: Brief article

Adults who are the subject of legal protection measures and are therefore declared incapacitated' in their member state (vulnerable or disabled retired people, incapable of looking after themselves or their property) are also increasingly on the move in the EU. Retired people from the north, for example, are moving to the southern member states. This raises cross-border issues on the protection of such persons or their assets, the subject of a non-binding report adopted by a wide majority of the European Parliament, on 18 December in Strasbourg.

MEPs call on the European Commission to come forward with a legislative proposal "on strengthening cooperation between member states" in this area.

The EP makes certain recommendations, such as a single Community form for incapacity mandates. Rapporteur Antonio Lopez-Isturiz White (EPP-ED, Spain) explained that, if such recognition existed, people who have given powers of attorney to a third party, by agreement or a...