What changed

DRAFT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

ORDINARY LEGISLATIVE procedure

Follow up to the European Parliament legislative resolution on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on measures to reduce the cost of deploying gigabit electronic communications networks and repealing Directive 2014/61/EU (Gigabit Infrastructure Act)

(COM(2023)0094 – C90028/2023 – 2023/0046(COD))

1. Rapporteur: Alin MITUȚA (Renew / RO)

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

2. Reference numbers: 2023/0046 (COD) / A9-0275/2023 / P9_TA(2024)0292

The European Parliament,

3. Date of adoption of the resolution: 23 April 2024

– having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2023)0094),

4. Legal basis: Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union

– having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C90028/2023),

5. Competent Parliamentary Committee: Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE)

– having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

6. Commission's position: accepts all amendments.

– having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of ... ,

– having regard to Rules 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

– having regard to the report of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (A90000/2023),

1. Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2. Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3. Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Amendment 1

Proposal for a regulation

Title

Or. en

Amendment 2

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 1

Or. en

Amendment 3

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 2

Or. en

Justification

Alignment with the Digital Decade targets as provided by the Decision (EU) 2022/2481.

Amendment 4

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 3

Or. en

Amendment 5

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 6

Or. en

Amendment 6

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 9

Or. en

Amendment 7

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 10

Or. en

Amendment 8

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 11

Or. en

Amendment 9

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 14

Or. en

Amendment 10

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 15

Or. en

Amendment 11

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 17

Or. en

Amendment 12

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 20

Or. en

Amendment 13

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 23

Or. en

Amendment 14

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 24

Or. en

Amendment 15

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 25

Or. en

Amendment 16

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 28

Or. en

Amendment 17

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 35

Or. en

Amendment 18

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 38

Or. en

Amendment 19

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 39

Or. en

Amendment 20

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 40

Or. en

Amendment 21

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 41

Or. en

Justification

In order to ensure harmonization across the EU and eliminate additional burden on operators, works related to minor technical upgrades and maintenance have been explicitly exempted from the permit granted procedure in Article 7 paragraph 2(new) of this Regulation.

Amendment 22

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 43

Or. en

Amendment 23

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 54

Or. en

Amendment 24

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 58

Or. en

Amendment 25

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 59

Or. en

Amendment 26

Proposal for a regulation

Recital 61

Or. en

Justification

Alignment with the Directive (EU) 2018/1972.

Amendment 27

Proposal for a regulation

Article 1 – paragraph 4

Or. en

Amendment 28

Proposal for a regulation

Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point 1 a (new)

Or. en

Amendment 29

Proposal for a regulation

Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point 2 – paragraph 1 – point b

Or. en

Amendment 30

Proposal for a regulation

Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point 4

Or. en

Amendment 31

Proposal for a regulation

Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point 11 a (new)

Or. en

Amendment 32

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 1

Or. en

Amendment 33

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 1 a (new)

Or. en

Amendment 34

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 1 b (new)

Or. en

Amendment 35

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point a

Or. en

Amendment 36

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point b

Or. en

Amendment 37

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 4

Or. en

Amendment 38

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 8

Or. en

Amendment 39

Proposal for a regulation

Article 3 – paragraph 9

Or. en

Amendment 40

Proposal for a regulation

Article 4 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2 a (new)

Or. en

Amendment 41

Proposal for a regulation

Article 4 – paragraph 2

Or. en

Amendment 42

Proposal for a regulation

Article 5 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1

Or. en

Amendment 43

Proposal for a regulation

Article 7 – paragraph 5 – subparagraph 1

Or. en

Amendment 44

Proposal for a regulation

Article 7 – paragraph 5 – subparagraph 4

Or. en

Amendment 45

Proposal for a regulation

Article 7 – paragraph 6

Or. en

Amendment 46

Proposal for a regulation

Article 7 – paragraph 7

Or. en

Amendment 47

Proposal for a regulation

Article 7 – paragraph 7 a (new)

Or. en

Amendment 48

Proposal for a regulation

Article 7 – paragraph 7 b (new)

Or. en

Amendment 49

Proposal for a regulation

Article 7 – paragraph 8

Or. en

Amendment 50

Proposal for a regulation

Article 7 – paragraph 9

Or. en

Amendment 51

Proposal for a regulation

Article 7 – paragraph 11 a (new)

Or. en

Amendment 52

Proposal for a regulation

Article 8 – paragraph 4 – introductory part

Or. en

Amendment 53

Proposal for a regulation

Article 10 – paragraph 2

Or. en

Amendment 54

Proposal for a regulation

Article 11 – paragraph 1 – point b a (new)

Or. en

Amendment 55

Proposal for a regulation

Article 11 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – point a

Or. en

Amendment 56

Proposal for a regulation

Article 11 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – point b

Or. en

Amendment 57

Proposal for a regulation

Article 11 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 2

Or. en

Amendment 58

Proposal for a regulation

Article 11 – paragraph 3 a (new)

Or. en

Justification

The provision is transposed from the best practices provided in the Connectivity Toolbox.

Amendment 59

Proposal for a regulation

Article 12 – paragraph 2

Or. en

Amendment 60

Proposal for a regulation

Article 12 – paragraph 5

Or. en

Amendment 61

Proposal for a regulation

Article 16 – paragraph 1 a (new)

Or. en

Amendment 62

Proposal for a regulation

Article 16 a (new)

Or. en

Justification

To protect citizens from excessive prices, retail charges for intra-EU calls are currently capped by the EU Regulation (2015/2120). Despite the fact that these caps are set to expire in May 2024, the European Commission did not yet provide a clear way forward. In the assessment report, the European Commission has recognized that at this point in time, it is hard to reassure that the retail prices for intra-EU communications would not increase if the measures that expire on 14 May 2024 were not to be extended. In this context of uncertainty, the rapporteur believes that action should be taken and fees on intra-EU calls should be abolished entirely. This is a significant step that would not only foster intra-EU communications and exchanges, but would also allow us to create a true single market for digital and telecommunication services in the EU. A first step was taken back in 2017, with the abolishment of roaming fees and the rapporteur aims to work further towards eliminating barriers for the intra-EU calls. Since the Gigabit Infrastructure Act may serve as the appropriate legislative vehicle to regulate intra-EU calls before the current provisions expire, the rapporteur suggests including a specific amendment in this regard that reiterate Parliament's position as adopted in report A9-0286/2021 on 15 March 2021.

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

The deployment of very high capacity networks is the cornerstone of the digital economy of the Union and is fundamental for ensuring a digital society in which every citizen and business is able to benefit from the digital rights. The latest developments in AI, cloud computing, and big data could provide smarter, more flexible and more innovative services. In order to be able to harness the full potential, ubiquitous and resilient high-speed connectivity infrastructure that meet the demands for faster, more reliable and data-intense connectivity are crucial. However, the current Broadband Cost Reduction Directive has failed to achieve its network deployment ambitions and challenge the possibility to reach the targets of the Digital Decade Programme. Fragmented rules and procedures across the EU, lengthy, burdensome and costly permit-granting procedures, difficulties in accessing public infrastructure, and lack of coordination and synergies have hindered the efforts to deploy fibre and 5G, and prevented operators from achieving economies of scale.

Therefore, the rapporteur strongly welcomes the Commission's proposal for a 'Gigabit Infrastructure Act'. This proposal is a step in the right direction that will facilitate and incentivise the deployment of very high capacity networks. The report emphasises the importance of establishing harmonised minimum requirements in a Regulation since it has been established that the current Directive has not delivered as expected on its objectives. The Regulation will also allow flexibility for Member States, taking into account their specific needs, but also the possibility to exceed these requirements, particularly if they aim to be more ambitious. At the same time, the report acknowledges the existence of good practices in several countries and highlights the need to incentivise the use of and learn from these examples.

This report also proposes the following changes to the Commission's proposal:

Expanded Access to Physical Infrastructure

In an effort to bridge the digital coverage gap between rural and urban areas, the rapporteur proposes, in limited conditions, to expand the obligation to facilitate access to physical public infrastructures to privately owned commercial buildings. This expansion aims to provide coverage in rural, remote, or scarcely populated areas where no public building or infrastructure can offer a satisfactory alternative.

Shorter Timelines

Recognizing the need for efficient and timely decision-making processes, and based on current practices in different Member States, the rapporteur believes that the Regulation should establish shorter timelines for granting permits, coordinating access requests and dispute settlement proceedings.

Inclusion of towers

The rapporteur supports the inclusion of operators of associated facilities (tower companies) in this Regulation. Since they will play a pivotal role in the deployment of high-speed wireless electronic communication networks especially in rural and sparsely populated areas or transport corridors, tower companies should be able to benefit from fast permit-granting procedures, similar to those for fibre. To ensure continuity of services and minimise disruptions, the report recommends protecting tower companies against potential speculative behaviour by ensuring that owners of land, where a tower is already installed or for which a permit has already been granted, will negotiate on fair and reasonable terms with the tower company. Regarding the obligation to provide fair and reasonable access to operators, the report suggests that price guidelines should consider the specific business model and circumstances of the tower industry.

Joint Coordination and Single Information Point

To streamline administrative procedures and prevent unnecessary delays, the report calls for enhanced coordination between competent authorities responsible for coordinating access requests. A designated body is introduced for the permit-granting procedure, when more competent authorities are involved in the granting of a permit request. The rapporteur strongly believes that this joint coordination will improve efficiency, transparency and reduce administrative burden for the operators. Additionally, the report welcomes the digitalization of procedures and emphasises the importance of establishing a Single Information Point that capitalises on best practices from Member States. This centralised and easily accessible source of information would further enhance efficiency.

Enhanced role of the stakeholders, BEREC and relevant Union agencies and bodies

The rapporteur acknowledges the inevitable role of the industry in the development of standards, technical specifications and guidelines. In this regard, the rapporteur advocates for the active inclusion of the stakeholders' community in the development process. Taking into consideration the specificity of the telecommunications sector, the report also highlights the need to take into account the input of BEREC.

Intra-EU Calls

To protect citizens from excessive prices, retail charges for intra-EU calls are currently capped by the EU Regulation (2015/2120). Despite the fact that these caps are set to expire in May 2024, the European Commission did not yet provide a clear way forward. In the assessment report, the European Commission has recognized that at this point in time, it is hard to reassure that the retail prices for intra-EU communications would not increase if the measures that expire on 14 May 2024 were not to be extended. In this context of uncertainty, the rapporteur believes that action should be taken and fees on intra-EU calls should be abolished entirely. This is a significant step that would not only foster intra-EU communications and exchanges, but would also allow us to create a true single market for digital and telecommunication services in the EU. A first step was taken back in 2017, with the abolishment of roaming fees and the rapporteur aims to work further towards eliminating barriers for the intra-EU calls. Since the Gigabit Infrastructure Act may serve as the appropriate legislative vehicle to regulate intra-EU calls before the current provisions expire, the rapporteur suggests including a specific amendment in this regard that reiterate the Parliament’s position as adopted in the report A9-0286/2021 on 15 March 2021.