CELEX: 51997PC0532
Language: en
Date: 1997-10-20
Title: Amended Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and the Council on common rules for the development of the internal market of Community postal services and the improvement of quality of service

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                                  Brussels, 20.10.1997
                                                  COM(97) 532 final
                                                  95/0221 (COD)
                        OPINION OF THE COMMISSION
                pursuant to Article 189 b (2) (d) of the EC Treaty,
                     on the European Parliament's amendments
                 to the Council's common position regarding the
                                   proposal for a
           EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
                                   on common
rules for the development of the internal market of Community postal services and the
                            improvement of quality of service
            AMENDING THE PROPOSAL OF THE COMMISSION
                  pursuant to Article 189 a (2) of the EC Treaty
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---    1.   BACKGROUND
   On 25 July 1995 the Commission adopted a proposal for a European Parliament and
  Council Directive on common rules for the development of Community postal services
  and the improvement of quality of service (COM (95) 227)'.
  The Economic and Social Committee gave its opinion on the Commission's proposal on
  28 March 19962.
  The European Parliament gave its opinion on first reading on 9 May 1996, and proposed
  58 amendments to the proposal3.
  The Committee of the Regions gave its opinion on the proposal on 13 June 19964.
  On 31 July 1996 the Commission adopted an amended proposal in conformity with
  Article 189a(2) of the Treaty, incorporating a number of the EP amendments5.
  The Council adopted its common position (EC No 25/97) on 29 April 19976, on which
  the Commission delivered its opinion on 6 May 19977.
  in the second reading, the European Parliament on 16 September 1997 proposed 5
  amendments to the common position.
  2.    PURPOSE OF THE COMMISSION PROPOSAL
  This Directive aims to provide for a regulatory framework at Community level for the
  postal sector.
  It defines the minimum universal service to be provided throughout the Community to all
  citizens, wherever they are located, at affordable prices. In order to ensure the financial
  viability of the universal service, the Directive defines harmonised criteria for the
  services which may be reserved to the universal service providers, to the extent necessary
  1
       OJC322of2.12.95,p.22.
 2
      CES 419/96.
3
      OJC 152 of 27.5.96, p. 20.
4
      CdR 422/95
5
      COM(96) 412, 31.07.96
6
      OJC 188 of 19.6.97, p. 9
7
      SEC(97) 821 final
 ---pagebreak--- for the maintenance of the universal service, whilst also providing for a gradual and
controlled opening up of the postal market to more competition.
The Directive also provides for the establishment of quality of service standards for
universal service, in relation to both national postal services and intra-Community cross-
border services, as well as for the development of harmonised technical standards.
Furthermore, the proposed Directive sets out common principles for tariff setting and
accounting by universal service providers, as well as for national authorisation schemes,
and requires separation between regulatory powers and operational functions.
3.     OPINION OF THE COMMISSION ON THE AMENDMENTS OF THE EUROPEAN
       PARLIAMENT
 All five of the amendments adopted by the European Parliament in second reading can be
 accepted by the Commission.
 o Amendment 1 changes the drafting of recital (27) on the issue of terminal dues, and
    provides useful clarification.
 © Amendment 2 deletes from Article 3(3) the provision for specific derogations (at the
    discretion of the national regulatory authorities) from the door-to-door delivery
    requirements of the universal service. It also requires that the exceptions from the
    universal service requirements of Article 3, third paragraph ("in circumstances or
    geographical conditions deemed exceptional by the national regulatory authorities")
    must be communicated to the Commission and to all national regulatory authorities. It
    therefore improves transparency and accountability.
 • Amendment 3 provides for a wider notification to the Commission of the steps taken
    by each Member State to comply with its obligation to ensure that the universal
    service is guaranteed, thus providing greater clarity and transparency. The two
    consequential technical modifications to Article 2(13) and 5(1) which flow from this
    Amendment, and which are referred to in the footnote to it, are also included in the
    Commission's modified proposal to ensure consistency and avoid duplication.
 • Amendment 4 specifies in Article 7(1) that exceptions to the weight and price limits
    for the reserved sector set out in that paragraph may be permitted in the case of the
    free postal service for blind and partially sighted persons. This makes it clear that the
    existing arrangements in Member States governing this service can be maintained.
 •  Amendment 5, concerning the right of universal service providers to negotiate
    individual agreements with customers, makes explicit in the substantive text of Article
     12 the principle already referred to in recital (15), and is therefore acceptable.
 4.    MODIFIED PROPOSAL
 On 6 May 1997 the Commission adopted its opinion on the common position concerning
 a Directive of the European Parliament and the Council on common rules for the
 development of the internal market of Community postai services and the improvement
 of quality of service, by which it accepted the revised text for the proposed Directive.
 ---pagebreak--- Following the second reading of the draft Directive by the European Parliament, the
Commission hereby modifies its proposal for a Directive to incorporate the five
amendments adopted by the European Parliament on 16 September 1997.
In addition to these five amendments, the Commission's modified proposal also includes
the two technical adjustments (to Article 2(13) and Article 5(1)) referred to in the
footnote to Amendment 3 in the Recommendation for Second Reading, the texts of
which were presented by the European Parliament's rapporteur in the debate in the
Parliament's plenary session on 15 September 1997.
 ---pagebreak---                      AMENDED PROPOSAL FOR
    A DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL
ON COMMON RULES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE INTERNAL MARKET OF
 COMMUNITY POSTAL SERVICES AND THE IMPROVEMENT OF QUALITY OF
                            SERVICE
 ---pagebreak--- common position                                                            amended proposal
                                          Recital 27
                                  (following Amendment 1)
Whereas the remuneration for the                     Whereas the remuneration for the
provision of the intra-Community cross-              provision of the intra-Community
border mail service, without prejudice to            cross-border mail service, without
the minimum set of, obligations derived              prejudice to the minimum set of
from Universal Postal Union acts, should             obligations derived from Universal
be geared to costs of delivery according to          Postal Union acts, should be geared to
 specified quality-of-service targets, thus          cover the costs of delivery incurred by
justifying suitable systems providing for            the universal service provider in the
 an appropriate coverage of costs and                country of destination: whereas this
 related specifically to the quality of              remuneration should also provide an
 service achieved;                                   incentive to improve or maintain the
                                                     quality of the cross-border service
                                                     through the use of quality of service
                                                     targets: whereas this would justify
                                                      suitable systems providing for an
                                                      appropriate coverage of costs and
                                                      related specifically to the quality of
                                                      service achieved;
                                          Article 2(13)
             (consequential technical amendment resulting from Amendment 3)
  universal service provider: a public or              universal service provider: the public or
  private entity designated by a Member                private entity providing a universal
  State to ensure the provision of a                   postal service or parts thereof within a
  universal postal service or parts thereof:           Member State, the identity of which
                                                       has been notified to the Commission in
                                                       accordance with Article 4:
 ---pagebreak---                                           Article 3(3)
                                  (following Amendment 2)
They shall take steps to ensure that the            They shall take steps to ensure that the
universal         service        provider(s)        universal           service      provider(s)
guarantee(s) every working day and not              guarantee(s) every working day and not
less than five days a week, save in                 less than five days a week, save in
circumstances         or       geographical         circumstances or geographical conditions
conditions deemed exceptional by the                deemed exceptional by the national
national regulatory authorities., as a              regulatory authorities, as a minimum:
minimum:
- one clearance,                                    - one clearance,
- one door-to-door delivery for every               - on& door-to-door delivery for every
    natural or legal person orf by way of               natural or legal, person.
    derogation, under conditions at the
    discretion of the national regulatory           The, ckc.ùmstaaces mentioned above
    authority.     one     delivery      to         must      he„_ __ ..communicated     to   the
    appropriate installations.                      Commission and to ail national
                                                    regulatory authorities.
                                            Article 4
                                  (following Amendment 3)
Each Member State shall, under                        Each Member State shall ensure that
procedures        deemed        appropriate..         the provision of the universal service is
designate one or more postal operators to-            guaranteed and shall notify the
be responsible for providing universal                Commission, of the steps it has taken to
 service and shall notify the Commission              fulfil this obligation and, in particular,
 of the operators) selected. In accordance            the identity of its • universal       V I'vl
 with Community law, each Member                      provideris). Each Member State shall
 State shall determine the obligations and            determine         in    accordance    with
 rights assigned to the universal service             Community law the obligations and
 provider(s) and shall publish them.                  rights assigned XQ the universal service
                                                      provider(s) and shall publish them.
 ---pagebreak---                                        Article 5(1)
            (consequential technical amendment resulting from Amendment 3)
Each Member State shall take steps to              Each Member State shall take steps to
ensure that universal service provision is         ensure that universal service provision
guaranteed and meets the following                 meets the following requirements:
requirements:
[Remainder of paragraph unchanged]                 [Remainder of paragraph unchanged]
                                        Article 7(1)
                                (following Amendment 4)
To the extent necessary to ensure the              To the extent necessary to ensure the
maintenance of universal service, the              maintenance of universal service, the
services which may be reserved by each             services which may be reserved by
Member State for the universal service             each Member State for the universal
provider(s) shall be the clearance,                service provider(s) shall be the
sorting, transport and delivery of items           clearance, sorting, transport and
of domestic correspondence, whether by             delivery of items of domestic
accelerated delivery or not, the price of          correspondence, whether by accelerated
which is less than five times the public           delivery or not, the price of which is
tariff for an item of correspondence in            less than five times the public tariff for
the first weight step of the fastest               an item of correspondence in the first
 standard category where such a category           weight step of the fastest standard
 exists, provided that they weigh less             category where such a category exists,
 than 350 g.                                       provided that they weigh less
                                                   than 350 g.
                                                   In the case of the free postal service for
                                                   blind and partially sighted persons,
                                                   exceptions to the weight and price
                                                   restrictions may be permitted-
 ---pagebreak---                                          Article 12
                                (following Amendment 5)
Member States shall take steps to ensure          Member States shall take steps to ensure
that the tariffs for each of the services         that the tariffs for each of the services
forming part of the provision of the              forming pail of the provision of the
universal service comply with the                 universal service comply with the
following principles:                             following principles:
-     prices must be affordable and must          -      prices must be affordable and must
      be such that all users have access                be such that all users have access
      to the services provided,                         to the services provided,
-     prices must be geared to costs;             -      prices must be geared to costs;
      Member States may decide that a                    Member States may decide that a
      uniform tariff should be applied                   uniform tariff should be applied
      throughout their national territory,               throughout their national territory,
                                                        the-agpljcation of a uniform tariff
                                                         does not exclude the right of the
                                                         universal service provider(s) to
                                                         conclude individual agreements on
                                                         prices with customers,
       tariffs must be transparent and            -      tariffs must be transparent and
       non-discriminatory.                               non-discriminatory.
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---                                                                   ISSN 0254-1475
                                                           COM(97) 532 final
                                              DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                10 08 07
                                    Catalogue number : CB-CO-97-550-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-78-26077-0
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