A meeting of the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council of the European Union took place on 8 and 9 June 2017 in Luxembourg. It was chaired by Estonia, on behalf of the Maltese presidency.
On telecommunications, the Council of Ministers agreed a general approach on a proposal to increase regulatory oversight and price transparency for cross-border parcel delivery services. One of the Council's proposals is to set up a European Commission website to display the cross-border delivery rates offered by delivery firms. This should increase transparency and lead to a reduction in prices.
Ministers also held a policy debate on proposals to reform the regulatory framework applicable to EU telecommunications, focused on strengthening coordination mechanisms to provide market predictability. In this context, most Member States considered that existing mechanisms work well and underlined the importance of a clear and transparent regulatory framework.
As regards coordination for 5G deployment, it was considered that excessive harmonisation could be detrimental, given the technology's rapid development and the specific needs of certain regions. It is concluded in this context that the structure of the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC) works well and that it should not be turned into an EU agency.
Ministers also looked at progress made on a proposal to update privacy rules for electronic communications (ePrivacy) and were briefed on the state of play of the digital single market strategy.
Estonia presented its work programme for the next Presidency.
Further information:
- Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council, 08-09/06/2017 http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/meetings/tte/2017/06/08-09/
- More transparent cross-border parcel delivery services - Council agrees its stance http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/06/09-more-transparent-cross-border/
