§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of State for Industry whether British telecommunications equipment is covered by British Standards Institute standards; and whether the standards are generally acceptable in all EEC countries.
§ Mr. Michael MarshallThere are as yet no British standards for telecommunications equipment as such, although certain apparatus designed for specialised application sometimes falls within the scope of British standards in other fields. International recommendations of telecommunications networks and services are prepared by the International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee (CCITT), a permanent organ of the International Telecommunication Union. The United Kingdom contributes to this work; British equipment and practices, like those of other EEC member States, conform to many of the CCITT's recommendations. However,618W technical differences between national networks rule out the harmonisation of detailed standards for conventional telecommunications equipment. The United Kingdom is working with the European Community through the CCITT and the Conference Europeene des Administrations des Posses et Telecommunications (CEPT) towards the harmonisation of standards for the integrated digital services networks that will become the basis of future telecommunications services.