European Parliament resolution on the Commission's XXXth Report on competition policy 2000 (SEC(2001) 694 - C5-0312/2001 - 2001/2130(COS))
Date: 2001-10-04
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: State aid, competition law, competition policy, electrical industry, liberalisation of the market, merger, telecommunications industry

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Emphasises that ‘making work pay’ should be the priority for fiscal policies to tackle the employ-
12.
ment issue and to solve the so-called ‘structural problems’
in Europe; underlines in this respect that
decreases in labour taxes should target especially the lower end of the labour market, in order to increase
incentives to go back to work, and not VAT increases which have adverse effects on inflation, but without
running counter to efforts to coordinate tax systems across Europe and include an ecological component
in them;

13.
Calls, in the same context, for social, fiscal and administrative obstacles which keep women or older
people from returning to or remaining at work to be abolished, in order to give a greater section of the
workforce access to the labour market;

14.
Underlines that not only the size but also the quality of public investment determine its contribu-
tion to economic growth and employment; public investment must be properly targeted to reflect econ-
omic and social priorities and be efficiently managed;

15.
Considers that an increase in public and private spending in education and in research and devel-
opment is a necessity for the successful transition to the knowledge society, but underlines that this should
be coupled with structural reforms in the corresponding fields; encourages public research institutes and
universities to embark on partnerships with the private sector to optimise the existing amount of resources
devoted to education and research;

Urges Member States to guarantee appropriate occupational training for all young persons, and to
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ensure by way of appropriate support measures that young people are enabled to make a smooth transi-
tion to working life;

Regrets that the Commission proposal to include a paragraph about long-term sustainability of
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public finances in the stability and convergence programs falls short of providing an adequate answer to
ageing-related problems; calls instead on the Council and the Commission to extend current Stability and
Growth Pact requirements by setting new, individual targets for each country, taking into account the level
of hidden liabilities implied by an ageing society; proposes that such targets should be reached by 2005;

18.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission.

9. Competition policy (2000)

A5-0299/2001

European Parliament resolution on the Commission’s XXXth Report on competition policy 2000
(SEC(2001) 694 $ C5-0312/2001 $ 2001/2130(COS))

The European Parliament,

5 having regard to the Commission report (SEC(2001) 694 5 C5-0312/2001),

5 having regard to the written reply of the Commission to its resolution of 24 October 2000 on the
Commission’s twenty-ninth report on competition policy (SEC(2000) 720 5 C5-0302/2000 5 2000/
2153(COS)) (1),

5 having regard to its resolution of 21 September 2000 on the Commission communication on com-

petition rules relating to horizontal cooperation agreements (C5-0304/2000 5 2000/2154(COS)) (2),

5 having regard to the Communication by the Commission relating to the revision of the 1997 notice

on minor agreements which do not fall under Article 81(1) of the Treaty (SEC(2001) 747) (3),

(1) OJ C 197, 12.7.2001, p. 96.
(2) OJ C 146, 17.5.2001, p. 106.
(3) OJ C 149, 19.5.2001, p. 18.

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5 having regard to the proposal for a Council regulation on the implementation of the rules on com-
petition laid down in Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty and amending Regulations (EEC) Nos 1017/68,
2988/74, 4056/86 and 3975/87 (‘Regulation implementing Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty’) (1),

5 having regard to the Commission’s evaluation report on motor vehicle distribution and servicing

under Regulation (EC) No 1475/95 (COM(2000) 743),

5 having regard to the conclusions of the Stockholm European Council of 23/24 March 2001,

5 having regard to the conclusions of the Nice European Council of 7-9 December 2000,

5 having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

5 having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (A5-0299/2001),

A. whereas competition policy should work principally to the advantage of consumers, bringing greater

variety, better quality and lower prices for goods and services,

B. whereas the public’s awareness of the benefits of European competition policy remains very limited,

C. whereas competition policy is facing significant challenges, such as globalisation and the growth of the

‘new economy’, the imminent enlargement of the Union and the introduction of the euro,

D. mindful of the success in raising awareness of European Competition Day, held every six months in
the country holding the Presidency of the Council and created on the initiative of the European
Parliament,

E. whereas an effective competition policy promotes the competitivity of European firms, and is thus an
essential requirement for sustained economic growth, employment and attaining the European Union’s
strategic objective, agreed at the Lisbon European Council, of becoming ‘the most competitive and
dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world’ by 2010,

F. whereas the best results have generally been obtained in conditions of free and fair competition

between private firms,

G. whereas three of the main tasks of European competition policy in 2001, to be addressed by Parlia-
ment in separate reports, are the updating of Regulation No 17 on the implementation of Articles 81
and 82 of the Treaty (2), the debate on the future of the system of motor vehicle distribution, currently
covered by a block exemption regulation, as well as the reform of Council Regulation (EEC) No 4064/
89 of 21 December 1989 on the control of concentrations between undertakings (3),

H. whereas, with regard to the previous point, the Commission’s evaluation report pointed out that the
exemption system had not achieved all of its objectives, and that consumers in particular did not
appear to be receiving their fair share of the benefits of this distribution system; whereas, further,
the Commission’s most recent report on vehicle prices confirmed that there are still great variations
in the price of new cars between the Member States,

I. whereas 345 new mergers took place in 2000, marking a new peak; whereas the number of mergers

has doubled over the last three years,

J. whereas the simplified procedure introduced for mergers has been a success, and has helped to speed

up the decision-making process,

(1) OJ C 365 E, 19.12. 2000, p. 284.
(2) OJ No 13, 21.2.1962, p. 204.
(3) OJ L 257, 21.9.1990, p. 13.

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K. whereas, despite some progress,

liberalisation continues to be introduced at different rates in the
Member States, distorting competition and preventing the introduction of the same rules for all in
the various sectors concerned,

L. whereas this situation has had a particularly serious effect in sectors such as the electricity industry,
where there are evident inequalities between publicly-owned firms pursuing highly aggressive acquisi-
tion strategies outside their home markets, and liberalised or privatised firms unable to respond on the
same terms,

M. whereas the so-called ‘national champions’ still dominate recently liberalised markets such as the local
call market in the telecommunications sector, where the incumbents are still in a position of ‘de facto
monopoly’, with a market share of nearly 100 % in all Member States,

N. whereas the total lack of transparency in the setting of electricity tariffs in some Member States gives
rise to suspicions that State aids in various forms are being used to try to strengthen the position of
domestic firms and are acting, inter alia, as barriers to entry by firms from other Member States,

O. whereas the Nice European Council statement on services of general economic interest confirmed that
‘the opening up to the market of certain services of general economic interest has had a positive
impact on the availability, quality and pricing of such services’, whereby universal access to services
of general interest and their security of supply requirements are ensured,

P. whereas illegal State aids will be examined in greater detail in a separate report on the Commission’s

ninth study on State aid in the European Union,

Q. whereas, unfortunately, the proportion of illegal State aid that is paid back is low, which shows a lack

of enforcement and commitment by the Member States,

R. whereas the Commission’s view is that the new economy does not require new competition rules, and
that an interpretation of the existing general rules should be sufficient to address new situations and
new problems,

S. mindful of the dizzying pace of the development of new information and communication techno-
logies, and the European Union’s clear disadvantage in the introduction thereof compared with some
of its trading partners,

1. Welcomes the XXXth Report on competition policy as a valuable and informative document and
stresses that, while the report confirms once more the overall picture of competition policy as one of the
EU’s most successful policies,
it also makes the point that there is a need for constant and rigorous
monitoring of distortions of competition by both public and private entities;

2.
Regrets that the Commission has not followed up, or will not be following up, its threat to initiate
proceedings in respect of unfair competition in the form of tax concessions or exemptions, and calls for
the investigation of distortions of competition caused by tax policy in the EU, which are not in accordance
either with the principle of the internal market or with the spirit of the Community;

3. Welcomes the system chosen by the Commission for the new block exemption regulations, which
are supplemented by guidelines to assist economic operators;

4. Welcomes as a necessary step the proposed modernisation of Regulation No 17 of 1962 implement-
ing Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty, provided that this does not involve any renationalisation of com-
petition policy, but draws attention to the technical difficulties involved, on the basis of which it expresses
doubts regarding its practical implementation;

5. Welcomes the spirit of decentralisation that informs Article 3 of the abovementioned proposal for a
Council Regulation on the implementation of the rules on competition laid down in Articles 81 and 82 of
the Treaty, but stresses that there is a need to further define and put in objective terms the criterion of
‘affect(ing) trade between Member States’ since, given its importance, the current lack of precision could
give rise to uncertainty and undermine the objective of uniform implementation of Community rules;

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Considers excessive the Commission’s powers under the reform proposal as regulator,

6.
judge and
executor of Community rules, and expresses doubts as to the gains for firms in terms of legal certainty
under the proposal in its current form;

7.
Emphasises the importance of effective international cooperation between competition authorities
owing to the inherently global nature of the new economy, and welcomes the proposed creation of an
international competition forum, but points out that effective cooperation begins at home, and thus urges
the Commission, in the context of the modernisation of competition rules, to ensure that cooperation
between European competition authorities functions correctly and efficiently;

8.
Calls once again for an international competition system in the framework of the WTO, since in view
of the growing number of worldwide mergers, regional and price cartels and oligopolies, distortions of
competition and abuse of the market can only be counteracted by worldwide minimum standards govern-
ing competition, particularly for mergers and cartels, and by minimum standards for supervisory auth-
orities in all WTO Member States;

Believes that the Commission should pay particular attention to attempts to restrict access to the
9.
Internet, and welcomes its commitment to ensuring that the Internet remains an open medium, which is
essential to the development of the economy;

Regrets, however, the Commission’s lack of foresight and its delay in drawing attention to the
10.
potential risks of the third generation of mobile telephones (UMTS technology), despite calls to do so by
Parliament;

Expresses its disappointment at the failure of the Stockholm European Council to agree on a time-

11.
table for final liberalisation of the European gas and electricity markets;

Calls on the Member States to proceed at a rapid and uniform pace towards the liberalisation of the

12.
markets in energy, transport and postal services;

13.
Stresses the utmost importance of services of general interest; calls therefore for strong and legal
certainty in the application of competition rules towards services of general interest to be maintained and
developed in order to secure supply requirements and universal access to services of general interest;

14.
Urges the Commission to act on conclusion 17 of the Stockholm European Council, which states
that the Commission shall ‘ensure that those enterprises which still benefit from a monopoly situation on
their national market will not unduly benefit from that situation’;

Urges the Commission to investigate the acquisition activities of firms in the electricity sector and

15.
the setting of electricity tariffs with respect to Community rules on illegal State aid;

16.
Condemns the Council’s lack of political will in failing to make the best possible use of qualified
majority voting on competition policy, thereby preventing progress in the liberalisation of sectors funda-
mental to the competitivity of the European economy;

17. Welcomes the fact that when the procedural regulation is adopted, the Commission will be able to
take steps such as adopting structural measures as a means of avoiding infringement of Article 82 of the
EC Treaty;

18.
Reiterates, in the context of a new revision of the Treaty in 2004, its call for the codecision pro-
cedure to apply to future legislative rules on competition policy where the Council acts by qualified
majority;

19.
Calls on the Commission to publish a table of objective indicators on privatisation in the Member
States, and stresses that the purpose of such a table would not be to pass judgement on ownership patterns
in the Member States but, rather, to act as a valuable source of information providing the requisite trans-
parency;

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20.
Regrets the report’s lack of reference to the pharmaceutical industry, a key sector currently experi-
encing specific competition-related problems, but welcomes the fact that the European Competition Day
held during the Belgian Presidency is to be devoted to this area;

21.
Stresses that in order to maximise the benefits of the single market, consumers must be able to buy
products where they are available at the lowest price within the single market, and urges the Commission
to continue fighting attempts to restrict parallel imports in sectors where prices are not regulated by the
State;

22.
Calls on the Commission to continue to work to ensure that the citizens of Europe become fully
aware of the real advantages of an effective competition policy, which will lead to increased understanding
and public support;

Calls on the Commission to review the content of its communication of 18 July 1996 on favour-
inter alia, on its

23.
able treatment, which was applied for the first time in 2000, focusing in particular,
excessive inflexibility and its non-legislative status;

24.
Eagerly awaits the Commission’s proposal on the future of vehicle distribution, which must take due
account of the interests of consumers, and stresses that the question of whether a further exemption from
implementing Community rules in this sector is really justified must be studied carefully;

25. Welcomes the Commission’s draft ‘de minimis’ notice, as it reduces the compliance burden of SMEs
as regards EC competition rules; welcomes in particular the more economic approach reflected in the draft
notice in comparison with the current (1997) notice,

26. Welcomes the initiatives adopted by the Commission in the fuel sector in connection with its call
for national authorities to investigate vertical restraints and examine the situation of independent firms that
do not form part of a network;

27. Welcomes the Commission’s proposal to start during 2001 a formal consultation process on the
abovementioned Regulation (EEC) No 4064/89 setting out recommendations and amendments for change;
underlines the interest of the European Parliament to be consulted from the very beginning of this con-
sultation process in the form of a code of good conduct between European institutions concerned before
any concrete recommendations are proposed;

Agrees with the Commission that although the level of State aid in relation to GDP is decreasing, it

28.
remains too high and should be reduced further still;

29.
Notes, however, that subsidies must not be condemned across the board, but that a subsidy must be
judged on the basis of qualitative criteria to see whether the aim it seeks to achieve justifies a possible
temporary distortion of the market, or whether it may even eliminate existing market distortions in the
medium term;

30.
Believes that public spending and investments providing high-quality infrastructures might be
important in order to create a competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy; calls therefore for
detailed information and monitoring on the use, quality and necessary redirection of public spending and
the corresponding European and national budgets;

31.
Applauds the creation, in response to requests by Parliament, of a public register of state aid and
scoreboard as important tools for promoting transparency and democratic control, but regrets the continu-
ing willingness to accept situations of blatant inequality in this respect;

Calls on the Commission to retain the annual reports on state aid in the European Union, even after

32.
the table of results has been introduced;

33.
Regrets that the Commission has been unable to provide reliable data and statistics on the number
of cases where illegal State aid has been repaid, and calls on the Commission to investigate this matter and
publish its findings as soon as possible, and calls upon the Commission to prepare common EU rules on
the reimbursement of unduly paid state aid;

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34.
Seeks to bring about an improvement in the legal position of the undertakings affected; the Com-
mission and the Member States should work toward greater involvement of third parties; it will be benefi-
cial to introduce proper competition studies and public hearings in conjunction with the Commission’s
treatment of individual cases;

35. Welcomes the progress made by the candidate countries in matters of competition policy, and the
fact that competition authorities have been established and begun their work; calls for greater discipline in
connection with state aid, with only short transitional periods if any;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council and the competi-

36.
tion authorities of the Member States.

10. E-commerce and financial services

A5-0301/2001

European Parliament resolution on the Commission communication to the Council and the Euro-
pean Parliament on e-Commerce and Financial Services (COM(2001) 66 $ C5-0257/2001 $ 2001/
2119(COS))

The European Parliament,

5 having regard to the Commission communication (COM(2001) 66 5 C5-0257/2001),

5 having regard to Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000
on certain legal aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the inter-
nal market (1), and in particular Article 3 thereof,

5 having regard to the Commission proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the
Council concerning the distance marketing of consumer financial services and amending Council
Directive 90/619/EEC and Directives 97/7/EC and 98/27/EC (COM(1998) 468 5 C4-0647/1998 5
1998/0245(COD)) (2), and its first reading position of 5 May 1999 (3) thereon,

5 having regard to its resolution of 3 April 2001 (4) on the Commission communication on the appli-
cation of conduct of business rules under Article 11 of the investment services directive (93/22/EEC)
(COM(2000) 722 5 C5-0068/2001 5 2001/2038(COS)),

5 having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

5 having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic Affairs (A5-0301/2001), and the opinion

of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market.

A. whereas the adoption of the Electronic Commerce Directive was a step forward for the development

of e-commerce in Europe, as the Directive is based on the country of origin principle,

B. whereas this approach is particularly important for financial services, as being intangible they are
especially well suited to cross-border electronic delivery, and because it would be unjustifiably burden-
some if a financial services provider had to comply with 15 different sets of rules and regulations,

C. whereas promoting the conclusion of cross-border contracts by electronic means in the area of finan-
cial services is only possible on the basis of continuing consumer confidence in such sensitive pro-
ducts,

(1) OJ L 178, 17.7.2000, p. 1.
(2) OJ C 385, 11.12.1998, p. 10.
(3) OJ C 279, 1.10.1999, p. 197.
(4)
‘Texts Adopted’, Item 7.