Verbatim report of proceedings

Tuesday, 27 October 2015 - Strasbourg

European single market for electronic communications (debate)

  Vicky Ford, on behalf of the ECR Group. – Mr President, in recent years people have travelled across Europe for their holidays, only to come home to a nasty shock when their phone bill arrives. Ending mobile roaming fees will be welcomed by millions of people.

Safeguards have been put in place to prevent excessive usage and to make sure that telecom operators are not forced to offer services at a loss. This is to make sure domestic customers will not subsidise customers who travel. To put it another way, when you travel across Europe, you can use your phone as though you were at home, but those who stay at home will not pick up an extra bill.

The deal also covers the common issue of internet packages not living up to the user’s expectation. Fixed-line customers will be entitled to clear information on the quality of services offered. They will be entitled to take action against their internet provider if the service does not match that which was advertised, for example if speeds are much slower than they expected. Telecoms regulators from across Europe’s 28 countries will agree a new set of guidelines on how broadband performance can be measured, compared and described.

The new rules do guarantee net neutrality. Users will be free to access content of their choice. It will not be blocked or slowed down. Access to start-up services will not be throttled or held back by a bigger company. There will be no two-speed Europe. Importantly, parental controls, where permitted in a Member State, will be able to continue. This is to make our internet safe, accessible and affordable across Europe.