31. 12. 82 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 346/13 
the abovementioned 'environment' will be taken into 
account in the implementation of the promotion 
measures in the second part of the Council Decision -
in so far as is possible and expedient under the 
particular circumstances. 
2. Specific comments 
2.1. Since the resources allocated (about 5% of the 
funding for national programmes in Europe) are 
relatively small, it is absolutely essential that they be 
concentrated to a large degree on a few key areas if they 
are to give an effective stimulus to further development. 
The emphasis must be placed on projects which are 
inadequately covered by national programmes since they 
are intended to further the common market. In the 
Committee's view this precondition is met by the 
proposed projects. 
2.2. The further development of programming 
languages, international standardization in particular, is 
a matter of priority for the software industry over the next 
few years. The programming language ADA offers 
excellent prospects, particularly for systems 
programming. The Committee would, however, point 
out that previous work in particular sectors of industry 
should play a special part in the selection of projects, in 
order to enhance efficiency. For the same reason national 
developments should be monitored and taken into 
account in the promotion plans. 2.3. The financial aid must be used to ensure that the 
results of the assisted projects are documented and 
disseminated as quickly as possible so that industry and 
science have access to them and can use them. In the case 
of pilot applications, special encouragement should be 
given to projects involving the training of instructors to 
train EDP specialists. 
2.4. The Committee endorses the promotion and 
development of cross-frontier information systems as 
they are an important precondition for the exchange of 
information within the Community and thus for greater 
integration of the national economies. 
2.5. As far as the choice of terminals is concerned, the 
ergonomic aspect and user convenience should figure in 
the development work. This will provide special 
opportunities to pursue further the items in the first part 
of the programme (sector 'environment') (cf. point 1.5 of 
this opinion). 
2.6. The Committee attaches key importance to the 
solution of the problem of data security, especially in the 
case of distributed data bases for public health. The 
complete confidentiality of personal data should be 
guaranteed before there is any participation in the 
project. 
2.7. It is anticipated that before any decision is taken 
on support for application projects, a careful 
examination will be made of current requirements so as to 
avoid misinvestment. 
Done at Brussels, 25 November 1982. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Francois CEYRAC 
Opinion on the proposal for a Council Decision on a preparatory phase for a Community 
research and development programme in the field of information technologies 
The text referred to the Committee has been published in Official Journal of the European 
Communities No C 314 of 30 November 1982, page 44. 
A. LEGAL BASIS FOR THE OPINION 
On 16 November 1982 the Council referred the abovementioned proposal to the Economic 
and Social Committee in accordance with Article 198 of the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community. 
No C 346/14 Official Journal of the European Communities 31. 12,82 
B. OPINION OF THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE 
The Economic and Social Committee prepared its opinion on the above matter at its 
202nd plenary session held in Brussels on 24 and 25 November 1982. 
The full text of the opinion is as follows: 
THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community, and in particular Article 198 
thereof, 
Having regard to the request made by the Council of the 
European Communities on 16 November 1982 for an 
opinion on the proposal for a Council Decision on a 
preparatory phase for a Community research and 
development programme in the field of information 
technologies, 
Having regard to its decision of 25 November 1982 to 
appoint Mr Nierhaus as rapporteur-general (Article 18 of 
the Rules of Procedure), 
Having regard to Article 46 of its Rules of Procedure, 
Having regard to the oral report made by 
Mr Nierhaus, 
Having regard to the discussions on 25 November during 
the 202nd plenary session held on 24 and 25 November 
1982, 
HAS ADOPTED THE FOLLOWING OPINION 
with two dissenting votes: 
1. The Economic and Social Committee welcomes the 
Commission plan to implement a European Strategic 
Programme for Research and Development in Information Technologies (Esprit). It accordingly 
endorses the draft Council Decision setting up an R & D 
programme comprising 16 pilot projects, as a 
preparatory phase of Esprit. 
2. The Committee has always supported this type of 
measure, from the Community science and technology 
projects of 1974 to the action programmes of the last few 
years, designed to build up new communications and 
information technologies. 
3. The Committee's belief in the importance of the 
new technologies is based on the recognition that: 
— they will produce major changes in economic 
structures and production processes, 
— their economic and social effects must therefore be 
considered in good time, and 
— they are above all crucial to the competitiveness of 
Community industry in the short and long term. 
4. The Committee may produce a detailed opinion on 
Esprit when concrete information is available on the 
technical details of the whole programme. 
5. The Committee endorses the Council Decision 
under review on the grounds that it is a major step 
towards the proposed introduction of Esprit, and will 
help to ensure that Esprit can be launched by early 
1984. 
Done at Brussels, 25 November 1982. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Francois CEYRAC