§ Mr. Mark RobinsonTo ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the outcome of the EC Telecommunications Council on 18 December 1996. [11408]
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§ Mr. PageI represented the UK at the Telecommunications Council held in Brussels on 18 December, arranged at short notice to discuss the postal services directive.
The Council reached political agreement on the further liberalisation of postal services. The UK supported the final compromise on the directive's further liberalisation proposals after successfully invoking the Ioannina agreement to secure improvements. Netherlands, Sweden and Finland voted against the agreement.
Under the agreement direct mail and cross-border mail will stay in the reserved area for the time being. The Commission will come forward with a proposal for further liberalisation by end 1998. The Council and the European Parliament will decide by 1.1.2000 on further liberalisation measures, in particular with a view to liberalisation of cross-border and direct mail as well as a further review of the price and weight limits, with effect from 1 January 2003. The directive will end in 2004 if no decisions have been made.