In 2021, the European Commission adopted a “Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan” and in May 2022 followed up with a study on the access to financial products for persons with a history of cancer, the so-called "right to be forgotten", in the EU. The Cancer Plan stated that a stakeholder dialogue should be established to develop a code of conduct to ensure that cancer treatment developments are reflected in the business practices of financial services providers.

In parallel, the European Parliament also published an “own-initiative report” on this issue: “Strengthening Europe in the fight against cancer”. This stated that “by 2025, at the latest, all Member States should guarantee the right to be forgotten” to patients who have survived cancer (10 years after the end of their treatment, and up to five years after the end of treatment for patients whose diagnosis was made before the age of 18) and that this right should be embedded in the relevant EU legislation.

Several Member States already have a right to be forgotten but several other Member States have no mechanism.

Intermediaries are always looking for the best solutions for their clients and in certain countries, intermediary associations have set up mechanisms to support this.  For example, in Ireland, there is a dedicated page on the website of Brokers Ireland, referring to specialised intermediaries.

EU taxation policy mostly focuses on establishing a minimum degree of harmonisation of tax rules in order to fight against harmful tax competition and fight tax fraud, while endeavouring to remove tax obstacles for cross-border economic activities. It affects insurance intermediaries in various ways.

With regard to the Value-Added Tax (VAT) policy, although financial services are currently exempted from it, there have been talks, from the Commission, on the possibility of (partly) introducing VAT in the financial sector.

Regarding the ongoing work of the European Commission on the Savings and Investments Union (SIU), a recommendation on the tax treatment of savings and investment accounts is expected to be published by the end of 2025.

As digitalisation is on its way, taxation could be modernised via the use of online portals for tax on investment, of automated tax reporting and standardised declarations. Even if intermediaries are not directly in the scope of VIDA (VAT in the Digital Age) proposed in 2022, it shows the Commission's ambition in this field.

The European Accessibility Act (EAA) aims to improve the accessibility of products and services for people with disabilities within the EU. This Directive is part of a wider initiative at European level regarding the inclusivity of all consumers in the internal market, called the EU Disability Strategy, aimed at including goals for digital inclusion, mobility and independent living. The EAA covers various products and services, including in particular consumer banking services and e-commerce.

According to the EEA, “E-commerce services” are “services provided at a distance, through websites and mobile device-based services by electronic means and at the individual request of a consumer with a view to concluding a consumer contract". Recital 43 of the Act states that: “The e-commerce services accessibility obligations of this Directive should apply to the online sale of any product or service and should therefore also apply to the sale of a product or service covered in its own right under this Directive."