WRITTEN QUESTION E-0817/02 by Camilo Nogueira Román (Verts/ALE) to the Council. The parallel economy in Spain.
Date: 2002-03-27
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Spain, gross domestic product, underground economy

26.9.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 229 E/141

The issue of blocked and non-blocked mobile phones is not regulated at Community level. On the national
level, for the moment, only Belgium has introduced legislation which prohibits operators from blocking
mobile phones. In other Member States the decision to block is either left entirely to the operators or they
are obliged to offer at least non-blocked phones. In other words, they have to offer at least mobile phones
at their real price letting the consumers have the choice of what pre-paid card regime they want to have.
In practice, most companies offer both. Consequently, the regime applicable to pre-paid mobile phones
remains a question of commercial practice of the operators and a question of consumer choice. It is not a
measure imposed by Member States’ governments. Where private economic actors apply rules or pursue
practices which might not be consistent with internal market principles, it is first and foremost for the
national courts to enforce those principles.

Furthermore, this is a question which is not particular to the provision of services between Member States.
The problems that may arise from the possibility of blocking mobile phones equally concern operators in
the same Member State.

The Commission recalls that the European Directives on consumer protection and its implementing
legislation in the Member States apply in any case, in particular, Council Directive 93/13/CEE of 5 April
1993, on unfair terms in consumer contracts (1), which sets out an obligation for Member States to ensure
that contracts concluded with consumers do not contain unfair terms and Parliament and Council
Directive 98/10/EC of 26 February 1998 on the application of open network provision to voice telephony
and on universal service for telecommunications in a competitive environment (2), which establishes that
mobile public telephone service providers are required to publish adequate and up-to-date information for
consumers on the terms and conditions applying to their services (Article 11.1). The same principles are
included in the new regulatory framework adopted on 7 March 2002 (Article 21.1 of Directive 2002/22/
EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002, on universal service and users rights, relating to
electronic communications networks and services (3)).

(1) OJ L 95, 21.4.1993.
(2) OJ L 101, 1.4.1998.
(3) OJ L 108, 24.4.2002.

(2002/C 229 E/161)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0817/02

by Camilo Nogueira Román (Verts/ALE) to the Council

(27 March 2002)

Subject: The parallel economy in Spain

According to the Commission reports on the parallel economy in the Union, it accounts for 23 % of GDP
in Spain, a percentage exceeded only by Italy.

What steps is the Council considering to put an end to this serious situation and, in particular, what
measures does it consider should be applied to Spain, in view of the Commission’s analyses?

Reply

(27 June 2002)

The Council would ask the Honourable Member to contact the competent authorities for this matter
directly.