Communication from the Commission - A Methodological Note for the Horizontal Evaluation of Services of General Economic Interest
Date: 2002-06-18
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: comparative study, information analysis, productivity, provision of services, service industry, services of general interest

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 18.6.2002
COM(2002) 331 final

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION

A Methodological Note for the Horizontal Evaluation of Services of General Economic
Interest

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION

A Methodological Note for the Horizontal Evaluation of Services of General Economic
Interest

1.

INTRODUCTION: BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION.

In its report to the Laeken European Council of October 20011, the Commission defined a
strategy for the efficient evaluation of the performance of services of general interest based
on:

i)

ii)

iii)

The reinforcement of sectoral reporting.

The annual horizontal evaluation of these services in the framework of the Cardiff
process and,

The benchmarking of the effectiveness of measures taken in the Member States to
attain adequate performance of services of general interest in areas not covered by
sectoral reporting or the annual horizontal evaluation. For this, the Commission
would provide assistance to Member States for benchmarking purposes.

The strategy proposed here is consistent with the Commission’s general initiatives to improve
governance and the quality of regulation in the European Union.2

On 7 December 2001, the Commission presented “Market performance of network industries
providing services of general interest: a first horizontal assessment”3 annexed to the “Report
on the functioning of product and capital markets4”. This was a first response to the European
Council’s request made in the declaration on services of general interest attached to the Nice
European Council conclusions. It provided a baseline for the future horizontal monitoring and
evaluation of these services.

The Laeken European Council, the Internal Market, Consumer affairs and Tourism Council
and the Barcelona European Council, as well as the European Parliament, have all invited the
Commission to present a methodology for the evaluation of services of general interest and to
carry out regular evaluations of these services. This communication responds to those
invitations by defining a methodology to be applied by the Commission in future horizontal
evaluations.

Horizontal evaluation does not preclude or interfere in any way with the sectoral monitoring
of markets or network industries. On the contrary, by providing a horizontal assessment of the
results and impacts of national and Community policies, it will enrich and supplement the
information obtained through sectoral monitoring.

1

2

3

4

COM (2001) 598 of 17.10.2001
European Governance, A White Paper , COM(2001) 428. 25.7.2001; Action Plan “Simplifying and
improving the regulatory environment”, COM(2002) 278, 5.6.2002.
SEC (2001) 1998
COM (2001) 736 final

2

Evaluating network industries providing services of general interest at this particular time is
justified by the fact that these sectors are currently undergoing important structural reforms
due to regulatory technological, social and economic changes. Furthermore, network
industries providing these services have a significant
impact on competitiveness as they
account for a large part of EU GDP and employment and the services they offer represent a
sizeable input for the European economy.

There is a greater need for industries providing services of general interest to be the subject of
horizontal evaluation than for other services having also a key impact on competitiveness,
because these services meet important social and public policy objectives. In particular, these
services can contribute to strengthen social and geographic cohesion, because market
outcomes do not or may not provide the socially desirable level of service provision. It is thus
necessary to evaluate the performance of these sectors, to ensure that the current structural
changes do not prevent those social and public policy objectives being attained.

If we are to achieve the Treaty’s objectives of sustainable growth, employment and cohesion ,
it is essential that services of general interest perform well. Horizontal evaluations must thus
be carried out at Community level. As explained below, the subsidiarity principle must be
applied when defining the scope of these evaluations.

Regarding the benchmarking of measures mentioned in point (iii) above, taken in order to
attain adequate performance of services of general
interest and not covered by these
horizontal evaluations nor by sectoral reports, the Commission intends to examine possible
requests by Member States on a case-by-case basis.

2.

OBJECTIVES

This Communication develops the Commission approach laid out last year. It seeks to make a
positive contribution to the decision making process in all policy areas related to network
industries providing services of general interest by providing a methodology that can help
produce precise, thorough and comparative evaluations of the performance of those network
industries and the services they provide. Rigorous and regular assessments of performance
will provide guidance for policy making, especially in the context of the market opening and
reform process, and help determine whether market outcomes are compatible with the social
and economic objectives of the European Union.

The evaluations will be based on factual information on the evolution of those industries and
feedback from citizens, consumers and other stakeholders. They will monitor and report on
the performance of network industries providing services of general interest as they are
currently impacted by structural reforms and the process of opening up to competition. In this
respect, the horizontal evaluations will focus on the following questions:

1.

How has competition evolved in these industries and, in particular, how important
was the influence of the market opening process on these changes?

Examining the evolution of competition in these sectors, especially as a result of market
opening, will take account of changes in the structure of both supply and changes demand.
The former include changes in the number of competitors, the evolution of prices, the degree
of openness of the market in legal terms and the evolution of concentration. The latter will

3

involve, for example,
switching suppliers.

investigating whether more freedom of choice has led to users

2.

Have these changes had an impact on market performance?

A second objective is to assess whether changes in competition have had a positive impact on
the performance of the network industries in terms of productivity, innovation, employment,
or growth, but also on the equally important aspects of affordability, quality and accessibility
of services of general interest.

3.

How have these changes been perceived by users?

As suggested by the September 2000 communication [COM(2000) 580] and the 2001
Commission report [COM(2001) 598], attention should be paid to consumers’ perceptions of
market performance5. To assess whether this changing performance is transparent to and
valued by consumers, the Commission will undertake consumers' satisfaction surveys. More
generally, the perception of all stakeholders needs to be taken into account. Any discrepancy
between users' perception and actual market performances by these industries will indicate the
need for more transparency, better communication, and better dialogue with users about their
performance.

3.

PROPOSED APPROACH

3.1.

Principles

The following principles have been taken into account by the Commission in preparing this
methodology.

a)

The methodology has to be adapted to the evolutionary nature of services of general
interest.

As stated by the Commission in the 2000 Communication on services of general
interest, these services are subject to constant social, economic and technological
evolution. It is not therefore possible or useful to define ex-ante a precise and
permanent structure for their horizontal evaluation. The evaluation’s sectoral scope
and thematic focus must evolve with the services themselves and with data
availability.

The methodology needs to be comprehensive,
environmental and social dimensions of
industries providing services of general interest.

taking into account economic,
the market performance of network

job creation, social
These services have an impact on economic development,
cohesion,
regions, sustainable
the balanced and harmonious development of
development and other important social objectives such as safety or stability in the
provision of the services. The methodology should ultimately cover all
these
dimensions and insofar as data availability permits, it will do so from the outset.

The term “users” includes both business and household consumers. For simplicity, the latter will be
refered to as consumers hereafter.

4

b)

5

However, as the first horizontal evaluation showed, this is far from being possible at
this stage and additional efforts are needed to fill gaps in current data availability by
developing new indicators, especially to measure the qualitative dimensions of
market performance and the externalities resulting from the market outcomes of
these service sectors. Implementation of this methodology and co-operation with
stakeholders should allow us to expand the range of indicators available in the longer
term.

c)

The methodology must be based on the full application of the subsidiarity principle.

As stated in the 2001 report on services of general interest, “it is generally up to the
Member States to define specific performance requirements for these services and to
ensure that these requirements are complied with”. This methodology thus focuses
on the Community dimensions of the performance of services of general interest, in
particular as regards the achievement of the public policy objectives defined in the
regulatory framework established at Community level for the provision of these
services. The focus will be on the impact on integration and on the functioning of the
Internal Market taking into account both the business and consumer perspectives.
The analysis will take into account the situation in different Member States, but the
yardstick for evaluation will be the objectives established at EU level. The analysis
will nevertheless also seek to highlight value added and identify "best practices" in
Member States.

Successful implementation of this methodology relies heavily on co-operation with
Member States’ authorities and national regulators, whose contribution and co-
operation will be essential
if we are to succeed in improving the information
available. However no new process nor reports will be imposed on Member States to
implement this methodology.

d)

The methodology must be transparent and pluralist given the clear social dimension
of these services.

This methodology has to take into account the opinion of citizens, as consumers and
stakeholders, as an essential element in the evaluation of market performance. As
announced in last year’s report, “a permanent mechanism for the monitoring of
citizens’ opinion and their evolution” will be established. Stakeholders, including the
social partners, will also be consulted on an ad-hoc basis for specific issues.

Public participation could be greatly expanded, as suggested in the European
Parliament’s resolution6. The Parliament proposes to “organise the debate within the
various existing forums (Economic and Social Committee, Committee of the Regions,
consultative bodies, associations involved in services of general interest initiatives
and consumer associations)”. The results of this debate should be taken into account
and provide guidance for the annual horizontal evaluation, and the evaluation should
itself be the subject of debate.

6

European Parliament report on the Commission “Communication on services of general interest in Europe”
COM(2000) 580 C5-0399/2001 – 2001/2157/COS; Final A5/0361/2001. Rapporteur, Werner Langen. 17
October 2001.

5

3.2.

Scope

The evaluations will focus on services of general economic interest and non-economic
services of general interest7 will not be subject to evaluation. Initially, horizontal evaluations
will cover the following sectors: Air transport; local and regional public transport; electricity;
gas; postal services, railway transport and telecommunications.

This sectoral coverage could be expanded (or even reduced) in the future, depending on the
evolution of the different sectors. Broadcasting would be among the possible candidates. In
those cases, the methodology will evolve to meet the specific features of new sectors to be
covered. Evaluations will in principle cover all Member States (subject to data availability for
specific topics). When appropriate and subject to data availability, attention will be paid to
regional information within Member States. New Member States will be covered starting in
2005.

4.

OUTPUT AND STRUCTURE OF REPORTS

The Commission will produce annual reports presenting the results of the horizontal
evaluation of services of general interest in the context of the Cardiff process on economic
reform. The timing of these reports will be adapted to the timetable for the production of the
Commission’s report contributing to the Special Spring European Councils. They will consist
of three main parts.

4.1.

Analysis of structural changes and market performance.

In this section, the Commission will use quantitative and qualitative indicators to assess
developments in the competitive framework and the resulting market performances of
network industries providing services of general interest. Insofar as data availability permits,
this section will cover the following:

i)

7

8

Analysis of the competitive framework will look at the evolution of the framework
of supply in terms of the legal degree of openness, the conditions of competition, the
number of players and their behaviour. The purpose of this assessment will be to
determine whether there is active competition between suppliers8; whether the supply
structure is changing; and whether there are barriers to entry such as interconnection
problems or discriminatory access. This analysis should disclose the behaviour of
suppliers and possible barriers to entry, both at domestic and cross-border level. This
latter issue is important, as one aim of the market opening process is to create single
markets in network industries. Secondly, the report will assess whether changes in
the conditions of competition have been accompanied by changes in the structure of
demand. Among other indicators, consumers' behaviour will be closely surveyed.

See appendix to COM(2001) 598 of 17.10.2001 for definitions of services of general economic interest and
non-economic services of general economic interest. Services of general economic interest is the term used in
Art 86 of the Treaty and refers to market services which the Member states subject to specific public service
obligations by virtue of a general interest criterion.
This analysis does not pre-empt or predicate more detailed analysis of effective competition at the sectoral
level, based for example on the existence of a dominant position.

6

ii)

The report will then assess market performance in network industries in a broader
sense, as structural changes and increased competition are likely to impact on the
various dimensions of market outcomes in these sectors. Besides employment and
economic performances, such as prices or productivity, the indicators will look into
the fulfilment of general interest service obligations and in particular the quality of
services, accessibility conditions, affordability and pricing conditions, environmental
performance and impact on social and territorial cohesion. Special attention will be
paid to the impact of changes in these sectors on different users and consumers.
Given the important territorial dimension in the provision of many of these services,
indicators to measure the impact of market performance on territorial cohesion will
be developed. Finally, evaluations will assess whether the provisions set
in the
legislation are meeting their objectives.

The technical annex to this communication includes a preliminary list of indicators based on
the information available from sectoral monitoring, plus other indicators that could be
developed in the future. This list will be expanded and become more precise as this
methodology is gradually developed and implemented.

4.2.

Results of the permanent consumer consultation process

This will be a key aspect of the horizontal evaluation process. It will provide valuable
information for the development of sectoral policies as well as for the overall assessment of
public policies towards network industries providing services of general interest, by assessing
whether the evolving performances of network industries are perceived and valued by users.

Two instruments will be developed to monitor the evolution of consumers’ opinion about the
performance of services of general interest.

i)

ii)

First,
the Commission will regularly produce indicators measuring consumers’
satisfaction regarding different aspects of the provision of services of general
interest. These indicators will reflect consumers’ perceptions based on panel data
collected for this purpose. They will take into account price affordability, quality,
accessibility, market
registered consumer complaints, contractual
relations with providers and regional dimensions of service provision among other
issues.

transparency,

The Commission will also conduct ad-hoc surveys to gather more information from
consumers and consumer organisations on specific aspects of services of general
interest.

When taking into account consumers’ opinions, attention will be paid to different consumer
types. In that sense, special attention will be paid to the impact of market opening on those
consumers most sensitive to changes in the provision of services of general interest 9.

The Commission will launch a call for tenders for the external provision of these services in
the coming years starting in 2003. Priority will be given to produce data of high quality and
extensive coverage.

9

Special care will be taken in the interpretation of consumer surveys.

7

4.3.

Cross-sectoral review of horizontal topics

In this section, the Commission will report on horizontal topics of relevance for all or most
of the services covered by the evaluation,
the subject of regular sectoral
monitoring. It will address issues such as the market opening and reform of network
industries and employment, their integration at European level, their environmental impact,
productivity and technological change, or their impact on social and territorial cohesion.

that are not

These reviews of horizontal topics will provide valuable information with a view to :

i)

ii)

iii)

Providing additional value added to sectoral evaluation and monitoring.

Expanding the range of topics regularly covered in section 1 of the horizontal
evaluation reports.

Developing new indicators and data sources for the regular monitoring of services of
general interest.

To this end, external studies will be commissioned from experts. In the preparation of this
third section of the reports and on an “ad hoc” basis, relevant stakeholders will be consulted.

5.

CALENDAR AND TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS

The Commission will produce annual reports implementing this methodology starting in
Autumn 2003. It intends to develop and adapt the methodology applied on the basis of the
experience gained and taking into consideration comments and contributions from Member
States, Community institutions and any other
In 2006, a more
comprehensive assessment will be made to evaluate whether the approach meets the
objectives with a view to a possible review.

interested parties.

By the end of 2002, in the context of the Cardiff Process the Commission will produce a
working document of the services of the Commission updating the first horizontal evaluation
of services of general interest published last year. This update will consist of :

i)

ii)

A horizontal evaluation of the performance of services of general economic interest
based on available indicators.

A new consumers’ opinion survey on the provision of those services updating and
comparing results with the Eurobarometer published by the Commission in Autumn
2000.

8

Annex

The qualitative and quantitative data included in the report will be collected from existing
data sources using the existing information infrastructure, including the various benchmarking
exercises carried out by the Commission's services, and from ad hoc studies. As the lack of
data may severely constraint the exercise, close co-operation with data providers -especially
Member States, national regulators and stakeholders - is required. In principle, the sectors
surveyed in the 15 Member States will include:

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

Air transport: segmented as EU versus non EU transport, and as transport of
passengers versus transport of freight.

Electricity: segmented as industrial versus domestic users, and as generation,
transmission, distribution and retail supply activities.

Gas: segmented as industrial versus domestic users, and as production or import,
transmission, distribution, and retail supply.

Postal services: segmented as inland mail (i.e. letters plus direct mails), cross-border
mail, inland parcels, and cross-border parcels.

Railways: segmented as domestic versus cross-border transport, and as transport of
passengers versus transport of goods.

Telecommunications: segmented as local, long-distance and international calls and
different types of access, including access to the local loop.

Local and regional public transport: segmented as bus versus light rail/metro.

The list of indicators below provides a framework for analysis. Some indicators are available,
whilst others have to be developed. Furthermore, their relevance and definition will vary
across industries. Finally, due to the evolutionary nature of the services provided by network
industries, the list of indicator will be subject to constant revision. As a matter of principle,
existing data sources and information infrastructure will be given priority for these purposes.
The following list is based on desirable indicators, some of which are not yet available.

A.

Analysis of the competitive framework.

a)

Supply-side aspects of market structure. Quantitative indicators will be used to
assess whether competition is developing among suppliers and if competitors
are entering the liberalised market.

i)

ii)

Percentage of demand legally and actually opened to competition.

Date of full legal market opening.

iii)

Identification of the incumbent

iv) Number of competitors in the segment.

v)

Percentage of the population having the choice between more than x
suppliers in the segment.

9

vi) Market share of the incumbent in the segment.

vii) Concentration ratios.

viii)

Internationalisation of companies.

Some other indicators will give information on the structure and regulation of the
supply.

i)

ii)

Degree of vertical integration of the incumbent and other competitors.

Regulator: Identity, powers (right to impose decisions, right to fine, ex-
ante or ex-post regulation).

iii) Key facility: identification, type of Third Party Access (regulated versus
negotiated and other types of access for specific network segments) for
both domestic and foreign competitors, types of unbundling (accounting,
management, legal, ownership).

Other indicators should provide information on whether there are any barriers to
entry (at domestic level by identifying possible discriminatory access, and at cross-
border level). Special attention will be paid to possible interconnection problems
between networks due to either physical scarcity or the inefficient use of available
capacity.

i)

Access charges to the network for domestic and for foreign competitors
(including access charges for import, export, and transit).

ii)

Structure and transparency of the tarification mechanism.

iii)

Time and cost to obtain access to the network.

iv)

Percentage of the supply carried out by Third Party Access.

v)

Imports as a percentage of domestic consumption.

vi)

Interconnection as a percentage of domestic capacity.

vii) Publicity of the available spare capacity.

viii) Percentage of capacity booked by the incumbent (including integrated

companies).

b)

Demand-side aspects of market structure.

The indicators will analyse whether changes in market structure have impacted on
the structure of the demand.

i)

ii)

Growth of the sector in terms of quantities.

Percentage of consumers having switched suppliers at least once in the
market segment open to competition in the last three years.

iii)

Price elasticity of demand.

10

B.

Market performance in network industries.

a)

Economic and employment performance (paying attention to the regional
dimension whenever possible).

i)

ii)

Contribution of the sector to GDP.

Contribution of the sector to employment.

iii)

Evolution of employment in the incumbent.

iv)

Evolution of employment in the sector.

v)

vi)

Productivity of the sector as measured by output per person employed.

Productivity of the incumbent as measured by output per person
employed.

vii)

Innovation of the sector as measured by patents and R&D effort.

b)

Price performance

i)

ii)

Evolution of prices in domestic currency in real and nominal terms.

Relative price level in euro compared to the EU average.

iii) Affordability: Price of services relative to the income of low/average-
income

income consumers (reported for consumers with different
levels)10.

c)

Quality of service.

The quality dimensions of services delivered by industries providing services of
general interests vary across industries. Indicators will therefore have to be adapted
to the situation in each sector. The indicators below are given here for illustrative
purposes. The range of indicators will be expanded subject to data availability.

i)

Reliability of services

(1) min/hours/days/weeks of discontinuation or delays in services.

(2)

Share of population affected by discontinuation or delays of services
within a year

(3) Repair time after service cuts or average length of repair delays.

ii)

Accessibility

(1) Time to get connected to the network.

10

When reporting information on consumers and users, differences in consumer types, income levels or
regional location will be given insofar as allowed for by data availability.

11

(2) Number of post offices /number of letter boxes per inhabitant.

(3) Number of passengers seats (trains, airlines) per inhabitant.

(4) Access to services in different geographic areas.

iii)

Safety.

(1) Number of accidents relative to distance and/or passengers.

(2)

Sectoral safety performance indicators.

d)

Impact on the provisions of Universal Service Obligations.

i)

ii)

Network density and evolution (e.g. new or abandoned air transport
routes).

Percentage of population not having access to the service (reported by
sub-national geographic areas).

e)

Environmental dimension

When appropriate, indicators analysing the environmental dimension of the market
opening of services of general economic interest will be used. For example:

i)

Share of renewable energy sources on gross electricity consumption, by
source.

ii)

Share of renewable energy sources to electricity generation, by source.

iii)

Indices of gross inland energy consumption, by fuel including gas.

Moreover, suitable indicators will be developed in the future to measure the
environmental impact of market opening, in particular as regards structural changes
in the transport sector having an impact on the environment. These could include the
impact of market opening in air transport on emission of greenhouse gases and
conventional air pollutants and the impact of structural reforms in various transport
sectors on the energy efficiency of the different modes of transport.

C.

Consumers' perception of services offered

a)

b)

c)

d)

e)

Overall satisfaction with services.

Satisfaction with price and quality.

Contractual or information problems between consumers and service providers.

Indicators of conflict resolution.

Reported difficulties switching service providers.

12

LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT

Policy area(s): Internal Market

Activit(y/ies): Evaluation of Internal market policies

TITLE OF ACTION: METHODOLOGY FOR THE HORIZONTAL EVALUATION OF SERVICES OF

GENERAL INTEREST

1.

BUDGET LINE(S) + HEADING(S)

B5-3001 Implementation and development of the Internal Market

A-7002 Technical and administrative assistance in support of different activities

2.

2.1.

2.2.

2.3.

(a)

OVERALL FIGURES

Total allocation for action (Part B): 3.450

€

million for commitment

Period of application: 2003-2007

Overall multiannual estimate of expenditure:

Schedule
commitment
intervention) (see point 6.1.1)

of

appropriations/payment

appropriations

(financial

€

million (to three decimal places)

Year

2003
Commitments 0.600

2004

2005

2006

2007

0.600

0.750

0.750

0.750

Total
3.450

Payments

0.300

0.600

0.675

0.750

1.125

3.450

(b)

Technical and administrative assistance and support expenditure(see point 6.1.2)

Commitments

Payments

Subtotal a+b

Commitments

Year

2003
0.600

2004
0.600

2005
0.750

2006
0.750

2007
0.750

Total
3.450

Payments

0.300

0.600

0.675

0.750

1.125

3.450

13

(c)

Overall financial impact of human resources and other administrative expenditure
(see points 7.2 and 7.3)

Commitments/
payments

0.474

0.399

0.399

0.399

0.399

2.070

TOTAL a+b+c

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

Total

Commitments

0.924

0.924

1.074

1.074

1.074

5.070

Payments

0.624

0.924

0.990

1.074

1.449

5.070

2.4.

Compatibility with financial programming and financial perspective

[X] Proposal is compatible with existing financial programming.

Proposal will entail reprogramming of the relevant heading in the financial
perspective.

Proposal may require application of the provisions of the Interinstitutional
Agreement.

2.5.

Financial impact on revenue:

[X] Proposal has no financial implications (involves technical aspects regarding

implementation of a measure)

OR

Proposal has financial impact – the effect on revenue is as follows:

3.

BUDGET CHARACTERISTICS

Type of expenditure

New

EFTA
contributio
n

Contributions
form applicant
countries

Heading in
financial
perspective

DNO

CD

NO

NO

NO

No 3

4.

LEGAL BASIS

Pursuant to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 on budgetary discipline and
improvement of the budgetary procedure, appropriations entered in this item are intended to
finance measures undertaken by the Commission by virtue of its institutional prerogatives.

14

5.

DESCRIPTION AND GROUNDS

5.1.

Need for Community intervention

5.1.1. Objectives pursued

The objective is to produce annual evaluations of the performance of services of
general economic interest. The European Parliament and the Internal Market,
(1.03.2002) have requested these
Consumers Affairs and Tourism Council
evaluations. The methodology proposed will
increase the number of indicators
available to measure the impact of structural changes in network industries providing
services of general economic interest. It will also produce regular measurements of
citizens’ sentiment on the performance of these sectors and the impact of market
opening.

5.1.2. Measures taken in connection with ex ante evaluation

A summary ex-ante evaluation has been conducted by DG MARKT (available upon
request). For that purpose, information provided by other services and technical
support from DG ECFIN have been used.

A first horizontal evaluation of serves of general interest was conducted last year in
the context of the Cardiff process (SEC (2001) 1998). This first evaluation revealed
the availability of quantitative information and helped identify the issues that should
be tackled in future and periodic evaluations.

The ex-ante evaluation addressed the following main issues:

-

-

-

How to expand progressively the availability of indicators, especially as
regards qualitative aspects of performance in these sectors?

What is the best way to produce regular and periodic measurements of
consumers’ opinion on market performance?

How to conduct pluralistic evaluations in order to take into account the
points of view of stakeholders?

The methodology responds to these questions following a number of criteria stated in
the draft communication.

5.2.

Action envisaged and budget intervention arrangements

Annual evaluation reports will be produced in the context of the Cardiff process. These
evaluations will be submitted to the Internal Market Council, the ECOFIN Council, the
European Parliament and the Economic and Social Committee

The evaluations will consist of three parts responding to the three actions foreseen in the
evaluation:

15

An analysis of the performance of network industries providing services of general

1
interest based on indicators

A survey of consumers’ views on the performance of those sectors and the impact of

2
market opening.

An analysis of a key horizontal topic that will enlarge the availability of indicators in

3
the future.

All Member States will be covered.

5.3.

Methods of implementation

The analysis of performance will be carried out by Commission services based on the
information provided by the technical assistance contract.

A database of indicators will be compiled and updated using external technical assistance.

The Commission will produce questionnaires and terms of reference to monitor consumers’
opinions and carry out in-depth studies of horizontal questions related to services of general
economic interest. For that purpose, two framework contracts will be launched to carry out
these tasks on a regular basis.

16

6.

FINANCIAL IMPACT

6.1.

Total financial impact on Part B - (over the entire programming period)

6.1.1. Financial intervention

Commitments (in

€

million to three decimal places)

Breakdown

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

Total

Action

1 Horizontal

0.200

0.200

0.250

0.250

0.250

1.150

studies

Action

2 Consumer

0.400

0.400

0.500

0.500

0.500

2.300

surveys

TOTAL 0.600

0.600

0.750

0.750

0.750

3.450

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

Total

Technical

1)
administrative
assistance

and

a) Technical assistance
offices

b) Other technical and
administrative assistanc
e:

- intra muros:

- extra muros:

which

of
construction
maintenance
computerised
management systems

for
and
of

Subtotal 1

2) Support expenditure

a) Studies

b) Meetings of experts

c) Information and
publications

Subtotal 2

TOTAL

17

6.2.

Calculation of costs by measure envisaged in Part B (over the entire
programming period)

Breakdown

Commitments (in

€

million to three decimal places)

Type
of outputs
(projects,
files )

Number of
outputs

(total for
years 1…n)

Average unit
cost

Total cost

(total for years
1…n)

1

2

3

4=(2X3)

Action 1

Horizontal studies

Reports

Action 2

Consumer suveys

TOTAL COST

Survey
reports

5

5

0.230

0.460

1.150

2.300

3.450

7.

IMPACT ON STAFF AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENDITURE

7.1.

Impact on human resources

Types of post

or

Officials
temporary
staff

A

B

C

Other human
resources

Total

Staff to be assigned to management
of the action using existing and/or
additional resources

Number of
permanent posts

Number of
temporary posts

Total

2

0.5

0.5

3

3

3

Description of tasks deriving
from the action

Preparation of questionnaires,
terms of reference of studies,
administration of contracts,
analysis of results and
preparation of the evaluation
report

18

7.2.

Overall financial impact of human resources

Type of human resources

Officials

Temporary staff

Other human resources

Amount (

€

)

324.000
0

0

Method of calculation *
Annual average cost of one
official * number of officials :
€
108.000
€
324.000

* 3 officials =

(specify budget line)

Total

324.000

The amounts are total expenditure for twelve months.

7.3.

Other administrative expenditure deriving from the action

€

Amount

Method of calculation

150,000
€
(75,000

€

for the first year +

* 4 years)

Budget line

(number and heading)

Overall allocation (Title A7)

A07002 – Technical assistance

450,000

A0701 – Missions

A07030 – Meetings

A07031 – Compulsory committees

A07032 – Non-compulsory committees

A07040 – Conferences

A0705 – Studies and consultations

Other expenditure (specify)

Information systems (A-5001/A-4300)

Other expenditure - Part A (specify)

The amounts are total expenditure for twelve months.

Total

I.

II.

III.

Annual total (7.2 + 7.3)

Duration of action

Total cost of action (I x II)

€

0.324

5 years
€

1.620

19

8.

FOLLOW-UP AND EVALUATION

8.1.

Follow-up arrangements

Non applicable

8.2.

Arrangements and schedule for the planned evaluation

The proposed methodology will be reviewed and evaluated in 2006.

9.

ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES

Open tendering procedures will be used for the aforementioned framework contracts.

20