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Select Committee on European Legislation Tenth Report
TELECOMMUNICATIONS: A NUMBERING POLICY |
9.1 The Commission intends that this Green Paper will launch an active discussion involving the EU institutions, fixed and mobile network operators and providers of telecommunications services, users, manufacturers, trade unions and others. It seeks views on each of the measures and on the timetable proposed. Responses are invited by 21 February, an early date which is necessitated by the deadline for liberalisation of the sector by 1 January 1998.
9.2 Introducing the Paper
the Commission says that, with the increased use of telecommunications,
numbers are becoming as important a resource as frequencies or
rights of way, with mobile network and cable TV operators requiring
numbers of equal quality or opportunity. Important reforms are
being made at national level to free extra capacity. Very different
approaches are being adopted and the opportunity should be taken
to harmonise numbering within the Union, the Commission suggests.
The organisation of numbering is at present governed by a complex
set of rules established at national level, through Community
action or by European bodies such as ECTRA/ETO[17],
within an overall framework set by the International Telecommunications
Union.
9.3 In his Explanatory Memorandum
(dated 19 December) the Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Mr Page)
summarises the proposals as follows:
(a) Carrier
Selection and Pre-Selection
(ii) By
1 January 2000: carrier pre-selection by user on a permanent or
default basis.
(b) Number
Portability
(ii) By
1 January 2000: extension of number portability for mobile and
personal communications networks and special services;
(c) Open
Numbering Schemes
"To
promote the single market there are two proposals for action:
(a) Creation
of the European Telephony Numbering Space (ETNS)
(b) Establishment
of a common regulatory and administrative framework
"To
adapt to the Information Society there are two proposals:
(a) Review
of Internet naming and addressing
(b) Long
term numbering plan for Europe
The Government's view
9.4 The Minister comments
on these proposals:
"On
the harmonisation of National Numbering Plans: Convergence
is fine but there ought to be no compulsion. The Government is
concerned that neither clear social need nor customer demand nor
assessment of costs and benefits have been demonstrated for these
proposals. They seem disproportionate and costly.
"On
Number Portability: The Government strongly supports the introduction
of portability at the earliest date and at latest the year 2000
so that the full benefits of liberalisation will be available.
"On
ETNS: The Government supports the development of the ETNS
for pan-European services where no alternative global service
is available and where its implementation does not impact on national
schemes. It is not clear what demand will be, given the availability
of global alternatives which are preferred by operators. In these
cases of freephone the global solution is preferred. The UK is
cautious about introducing a further European numbering administrative
regulatory layer. There is already the European Telecommunications
Office (ETO) which can manage the ETNS. "On a long term integrated European Numbering Plan: The Government is concerned at the proposals for a long term European numbering plan. The Commission is seeking to have a second bite of the cherry. Similar proposals were rejected on the grounds of lack of clear evidence of customer demand and lack of cost/benefit assessment as recently as 1995 when they were included in a Europe-wide consultative exercise". Conclusion
9.5 The Commission is
clearly aware that there is a balance to be struck between the
benefits of harmonisation and those of competition. The Green
Paper provides an opportunity for a wide representative sample
of opinion to be canvassed. It will be interesting to see what
the response is to the proposals for a European numbering administrative
and regulatory layer. The Commission's case is not balanced by
an examination of alternative solutions, such as how co-operation
might be improved at the global level.
9.6 We note that the Minister
regards several of the proposals as potentially costly and ask
him to cover this aspect in Explanatory Memoranda on any subsequent
proposals for action or legislation from the Commission. We are
clearing the document now before us. 17 European Committee of Telecommunications Regulatory Affairs and the European Telecommunications Office. Back |
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| © Parliamentary copyright 1997 | Prepared 31 January 1997 |