Euro MPs this afternoon voted to end the below 50g mail monopoly in most EU members states – but atthe start of 2011 and not 2009 as the European Commission had wanted.
The key European Parliament vote in Strasbourg means it is unlikely the Commission will getits way on an early opening of the EUR 90 billion postal market to full competition, even thoughthe Netherlands Parliament has voted to liberalise completely its market at the start of 2008 andGermany is considering following suit.
A majority of MEPs voted to accept the transport committee’s recommendations thatliberalisation be postponed for two years to give the 27 member states more time to adapt theirsystems to an open market and examine how they are going to continue to fund the universal service,where mail is delivered to any location on national territory no matter how remote.
Countries such as the UK, Sweden and Finland, where the markets are already fullyliberalised, the Netherlands and Germany, support the Commission’s proposal to liberalise the EUletters market by 1 January 2009.
But most countries, led by France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Poland and Greece, wanted moretime. They were also supported by trade unions which see liberalisation as the start of a wave ofprivatisation of state-owned mail operators with the consequent loss of thousands of jobs acrossthe continent in an industry that employs over five million people.
Yet the debate will rumble on. The European Commission’s proposal is subject to a co-decisionprocedure between the Parliament and the Council of Ministers, the decision-making body made up ofrepresentatives and ministers of EU governments.
It could take months for the Council and Parliament to come to an agreement on thecontroversial directive and it will perhaps happen through a long-winded conciliation procedure.The Parliament’s word is not final.
On the other hand, if member states agree with the MEPs’ decision at council meetings in theautumn, they may ratify the delayed 2011 implementation of the new EU postal directive immediately.A few member states – such as Greece and newer EU members – would have until 2013 to implement thelegislation.
