Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-05-23-Speech-3-055"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20070523.3.3-055"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Ladies and gentlemen, the seven-year struggle between Parliament and the European telecoms operators is drawing to a close. As MEPs we were no longer able to stand by as prices rose to five times the level of costs, thus restricting communications in the internal market. We were no longer able to sit back and watch the huge discrepancies between northern and southern Europe in terms of the cost of international calls, and merely to criticise the lack of transparency. The operators proved unable to demonstrate their steep costs to us and the national regulators confirmed that they do not have any influence when it comes to cross-border calls.
We must therefore today take action at a Union level. When the market fails, regulation is the necessary response. The regulation is limited to a three year period, by which time the market will have moved on. The tariff of EUR 49.24 is equal to the average price charged by the three biggest operators, and we are giving the people the opportunity to choose other deals which may be on the market. We are also giving the public the right freely to move from one operator to another and back again. The most important thing is, of course, the obligation to provide consumers with information on prices in good time. Just yesterday, operators began distributing their leaflets and finally publicising their prices. Opponents of the regulation argue that there is no reason to interfere in the market because there are already packages to be found with lower roaming prices. I feel, however, that these offers appeared only when the Commission publicised the regulation; in other words, things started moving only under the threat of regulation and certainly not as a result of market mechanisms.
One might ask whether there was a need for a regulation on the retail price of voice services. I think there was, because the consumer is guided by the final price and it is the consumer’s choice alone that influences the market. We will keep an eye on how matters progress on data services not covered by the regulation. I should like to call on the socialists not to block the adoption of this Council regulation, as this will mean that it can be in force by the summer. I hope that the liberal minister for foreign affairs stands her ground in the face of pressure from the lobbyists. On behalf of the Czech people, I should like to thank the negotiating team, Mr Rübig, Mrs Niebler and others from the Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats, and the Commission for the job they have successfully completed in the interests of the people of the EU."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples