Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on:

- the 'Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Decision on a series of guidelines, including the identification of projects of common interest, for trans-European networks for the electronic Interchange of Data between Administrations (IDA)`, and - the 'Proposal for a Council Decision adopting a series of actions and measures in order to ensure interoperability of and access to trans-European networks for the electronic Interchange of Data between Administrations (IDA)` () (98/C 214/09)

On 30 January 1998 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under Article 129d of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the above-mentioned proposals.

The Section for Industry, Commerce, Crafts and Services, which was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 1 April 1998. The rapporteur was Mr J. Bento Gonçalves.

At its 354th plenary session (meeting of 29 April 1998), the Economic and Social Committee adopted the following opinion by 119 votes to one with two abstentions.

1. General comments

1.1. Evaluation of IDA

1.1.1. Prefacing the European Parliament and Council proposals under analysis, the Commission has presented a Communication on the evaluation of IDA I, referring to the difficulties the programme had to cope with during its period of application as a consequence of the rapid development of information technologies and instruments, triggered by the brisk pace of technological progress. The appearance of the Internet has speeded up the process even further, requiring strategies to be rethought, as demonstrated by the astronomical growth in use of this new means of data communication which has brought onto the market a wealth of new products and services; this has required a re-orientation of strategy, which IDA II will be examining.

1.1.2. The mid-term evaluation of the current IDA programme, which was required by Article 6 of the Council decision, was carried out by the Commission, assisted by independent evaluators; it has provided useful observations on the objectives, strategy and management of the programmes.

1.1.3. The evaluation concluded that the first phase of IDA has been a valuable programme which has launched and stimulated the development of trans-European telematics systems and fostered administrative cooperation among Member State administrations and EU institutions; it has also helped make administrations aware of the importance of, and need for, these networks and programmes and their interoperability.

1.2. Telematics applications to date

1.2.1. Telematics applications have been drawn up for specific sectors: customs and taxation, fisheries, agriculture, social security, public procurement, health, statistics, commercial policy, competition policy and culture.

2. General comments on IDA II

2.1. The environment and developments surrounding IDA I have undergone constant change and this, together with the overriding need for European administrations to take advantage of new technological opportunities for speeding up completion of the single market, determines this new phase of the project (IDA II), allowing use of associated Internet technologies and facilitating to a considerable extent the creation of telematics networks which allow global connectivity.

2.2. The Commission proposals for a second phase in the IDA programme aim to provide technological support needed to a) secure a more flexible Community decision-making process and b) ensure Community policies and actions are more effective and beneficial for the general public and industry.

2.3. To this end, national and Community administrations will collaborate to establish telematics networks ensuring the highest level of interoperability between systems, not only within each administrative sector but also between different sectors and with the private sector. These actions will be based on a market-orientated strategy of providing service to users, aimed at ensuring greater cost-effectiveness, simplifying network construction and improving their capacity to adapt to technological progress.

2.4. This, will ensure that full use is made of IDA networks by those responsible for the Community policies and activities benefiting from the networks. Indeed, the networks will simplify their task a great deal, allowing them to improve on efficiency and service capacity.

2.5. These technological advances, while facilitating the establishment of telematics networks, nevertheless entail other problems such as security, legal obstacles and the need for interoperable solutions which satisfy multilingual and multicultural requirements; this in turn necessitates global coordination and dialogue between both Member State and Community administrations.

2.6. In general, the guidelines for IDA I will be maintained; the ESC has already expressed its views on these in its Opinion 709/93 ().

2.6.1. This new phase (IDA II) will focus on:

- the development of network infrastructures, including the definition and implementation of generic services, giving priority to those products and services available on the market, to coordinate and support the various sectoral administrations;

- simplification in the creation of IDA networks so that they are less costly and cumbersome, and more interoperable;

- the developmental capacity of the IDA network should take into account any adjustments to the requirements of administrations which might prove necessary to harmonize information content and the management of interoperational systems.

2.6.2. To achieve the above objective, it will be necessary to standardize the compilation of data, giving priority to standardization within each sector, so as to facilitate analysis and comparison of results.

2.6.3. As regards programme management, on the basis of experience to date, IDA II will move towards concentrating managerial activities in a single management committee, the tasks of which should be more clearly set out in the proposed decision.

2.6.4. IDA II will have a duration of five years. A list will have to be drawn up of projects supported by the programme on a more regular basis, so that priorities can be established; from this can be distilled a list of projects of common interest, which will be reviewed every three years.

2.6.5. This approach thus aims to encourage investment by industry and promote partnerships between the public and private sectors.

2.6.6. It is necessary to specify more clearly the criteria applied to projects which may apply for funding and the limits on the duration of this funding.

2.6.7. Future proposals for new developments must therefore always be accompanied by statements of how their operational costs will be met.

2.7. The Internet and its regulation

2.7.1. The growth and globalization of the Internet have transformed the global communications landscape. The Internet is designed in such a way as to provide a simple method of communication between a vast number of people which is dynamic, flexible and open to all. This is where its strength lies and also its weakness. The Internet was not devised to protect sensitive information or to guarantee high standards of service. There are no rules to regulate service users or suppliers.

2.7.2. Private 'Intranets`

The facts mentioned above militate against use of the Internet in environments where there is a strong need for reliability, service quality and security. However, the technologies on which the Internet is based can be used effectively in private networks to set up what is commonly known as an 'Intranet`. If they are managed in a coordinated fashion with everyone involved taking a responsible attitude, Intranets are capable of surmounting the above-mentioned obstacles, offering a viable option in cost-benefit terms for the implementation of IDA networks.

2.7.3. The provision of information to the general public and to businesses

With the advent of the information society, administrations, in their capacity as protagonists in this revolution, must encourage and facilitate the flow of information to and from the general public and the business sector. Sectoral networks must set up broader communication models as soon as possible making use of global technologies such as the Internet while bearing in mind security requirements.

3. Political, strategic and legal context

3.1. The action plan for the single market devised by the Commission and presented at the Amsterdam European Council () discusses four strategic objectives:

Objective 1 - making the rules more effective;

Objective 2 - eliminating the main market distortions;

Objective 3 - abolishing sectoral obstacles to market integration;

Objective 4 - placing the single market at the service of the general public.

3.2. There are a variety of actions designed to give substance to the four freedoms of movement in the European Union:

- freedom of movement and establishment of persons;

- freedom of movement of products;

- freedom of movement of services;

- freedom of movement of capital.

3.3. These rights, which have been bestowed upon Europe's citizens and economic and social operators, require the Community institutions and the Member States - through their administrations - to create the technical and legal conditions for us to be able to benefit freely and safely from the advantages of the Community area, with rights and duties standardized as far as possible, regardless of nationality.

3.4. Over and above the achievement of the single market objectives, there are a number of issues which add to the challenges facing us in which the contribution and success of the IDA will be of significance: these include the practical achievement of European monetary union, support for enlargement of the Union and reform of the European institutions.

3.5. The IDA programme as a whole constitutes a key instrument for realizing these rights and all concerned should view the programme as being something which must not fail.

3.6. Combating fraud

3.6.1. Telematics networks are key instruments for combating fraud. For this, more effective communication is required between national and community administrations at a level which would be impossible to secure without the capacity of telematics for data exchange. Fighting fraud is therefore one of the priorities of the IDA II programme, as defined in the proposed decision on guidelines. Moreover, the financial interests of the Community in implementing the programme will be safeguarded by appropriate measures (described in the financial statement accompanying the Commission proposals).

3.7. IDA II and security ()

3.7.1. Another major concern of IDA II is security. Indeed, problems relating inter alia to the integrity, confidentiality and authentication of messages, as well as their non-repudiation, are particularly delicate where public administrations are concerned. Consequently, generic services used for the whole IDA network will have to guarantee suitable levels of security, satisfying both interoperability and efficiency requirements. Moreover, specific horizontal actions will be undertaken to define a legal and security framework model for the trans-European exchange of data between administrations, to encourage adoption of this by Member States and to secure its application in the administration of the Community itself.

3.8. Budget

Analysis of the financial statement appended to IDA II shows operational costs of ECU 71,6 million (for the 1998-2000 period) which, in view of the objectives and tasks involved, does not appear to be excessive.

It should be borne in mind that this total does not include Member States' financial participation.

4. Specific comments

4.1. Proposal for trans-European networks for the electronic interchange of data between administrations (IDA) 97/0340 (COD)

4.1.1. Article 8(1) (TAC)

Add the following sentence:

'The Committee shall also have the task of approving the annual work programme and the implementation programmes for each of the IDA programmes.`

4.1.2. Article 11(5)

The following wording is proposed for this paragraph:

'A post-implementation review of each of the other sectoral networks shall be carried out within one year of their conclusion. The results of each review will be sent to the Member States.`

4.2. Proposal on actions and measures to ensure interoperability [97/0341 (SYN)]

4.2.1. Article 3 should contain a point which clearly sets out the following:

'Implementation of these horizontal actions and measures will be market-oriented, giving preference to the acquisition of services on the market, particularly specialized SME services, and avoiding investment in infrastructure, specific technologies and in the development of proprietary solutions.`

4.2.2. Add the following to Article 4(2b):

'... imposed by a multi-vendor environment, taking account of the services needed for implementation, operational maintenance and support for users in sectoral networks.`

4.3. Article 12(1) (TAC)

4.3.1. Add the following sentence:

'The Committee shall also have the task of approving the annual work programme and the implementation programmes for each of the IDA programmes.`

5. Conclusions

5.1. Dialogue: an essential prerequisite

5.1.1. Cooperation between all protagonists by means of frank and constructive dialogue is an essential prerequisite.

5.2. Coordination

5.2.1. Community-level coordination and cooperation, and links between this and the relevant sectoral units in each administration, as well as links with operators of service-providing networks and firms, will have to be effective, considering the importance of the project for the future of the European Union.

5.3. Confidentiality and protection of personal information

5.3.1. Information, security and compliance with legal aspects as regards the guarantee of confidentiality and protection of personal information constitute another set of prerequisites which must be fully guaranteed.

5.4. IDA II will have to boost the development of European SMEs, both in the hi-tech and service sectors.

5.5. Training and employment opportunities for young people

5.5.1. A key task for the programme will be the training of staff to operate the various aspects of the network, including the vocational retraining of current staff and the training of young people (), and involving educational establishments at all levels in all Member States. Young people who are well prepared for this area will represent considerable value added for the future of the objectives targeted by the IDA; the programme will provide a new area of job creation.

5.6. The ESC backs the proposals set out for IDA II in COM(97) 661 final, as complemented by the ideas and proposals contained in this opinion, especially those summarized in the conclusions.

Brussels, 29 April 1998.

The President of the Economic and Social Committee

Tom JENKINS

() OJ C 54, 21.2.1998, pp. 3-12.

() OJ C 249, 13.9.1993.

() COM(97) 184 final.

() See Opinion CES 443/98.

() OJ C 129, 27.4.1998.