Top News from the European Commission 12 March – 08 April 2007
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AGENDA/07/10 Brussels, Friday 09 March Top News from the European Commission 12 March – 08 April 2007 Background notes from the Spokesperson’s service for journalists The European Commission reserves the right to make changes Monday 12 to Tuesday 13 March: European football stars to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the signature of the Treaty of Rome The news: The best of European football will be on show in Manchester to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the signature of the Treaty of Rome setting up the modern-day European Union. Manchester United will play a Europe XI team to be coached by Italian World Cup winner Marcello Lippi, assisted by UEFA Technical Director and former Scotland manager Andy Roxburgh. Marcello Lippi is currently in talks with several top European clubs to secure players for the European side and further names will be announced as the match date approaches. The first confirmed players in the European team are Liverpool players Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher, Olympique Lyonnais players Eric Abidal and Gregory Coupet and the top players from Barcelona’s Champions League winning team, Carles Puyol, Gianluca Zambrotta, Lilian Thuram. The final European line-up will be announced on 12 March when Commission President José Manuel Barroso will meet in Brussels together with new UEFA President Michel Platini and Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton. The game will coincide with the 50th anniversary of Manchester United's participation as the first English team to play in European football club competitions. All proceeds from the event will go to charity. The events: Monday 12: Press conference by European Commission President José Manuel Barroso, new UEFA President Michel Platini and Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton at 12.30 in the Berlaymont's Press Room, in Brussels. • EbS Coverage Tuesday 13: Football game Europe XI Vs Manchester United at the Old Trafford, Manchester United. The sources: EU's 50th Anniversary website: http://europa.eu/50/index_en.htm UK Representation's website: www.europe.org.uk/football UEFA website: http://www.uefa.com/ Further details on tickets for the match: www.manutd.com Video: Archive material on the commemoration of 50th anniversary of the signature of the Treaty of Rome available The contact: Mark Gray +32 2 298 8644 Editor Alain Bloëdt +32 2 295 56 04 SPP Coordination & Planning Unit Tuesday 13 March: Proposal to adapt minimum taxation rates on commercial diesel The news: In the light of the results of a comprehensive impact assessment the EU Commission will make a new proposal on professional diesel to amend Directive 2003/96/EC in order to reduce the distortion of competition in the haulage sector caused by fuel price differences. This distortion of competition results from the fact that tax rates for diesel differ greatly from one Member State to another. At the same time, big trucks have tanks of huge capacity, allowing them to cover between 1500 and 3000 kilometres, thereby conducting a kind of fiscal planning where they take advantage of the very significant differences in national excise duties on diesel fuel (tank tourism phenomenon). The road transport sector is now fully opened up to competition. However, excessive differences in fuel tax levels are increasingly an obstacle to the smooth functioning of the internal market. The proposed changes should reduce the differences in taxation for commercial diesel, thus minimising the distortion. The result should be to provide a more level playing field for haulage companies and petrol stations in Member States which are currently affected by foreign competitors based in neighbouring countries with lower fuel prices. Apart from ensuring that the internal transport market operates more smoothly, the proposal meets common transport policy objectives and will provide better protection for the environment. It will contribute to the implementation of the Kyoto protocol. The event: Press conference with the Commissioner responsible for Customs and Taxation, Mr Kovacs in the Euopean Parliament's Press Room, in Strasbourg. Time to be confirmed. • Ebs coverage The sources: IP/03/1456; IP/06/818; IP/06/1434 European Commission websites: http://ec.europa.eu/prelex/detail_dossier_real.cfm?CL=en&DosId=164839 http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/taxation/excise_duties/energy_products/index_en.htm • Infoclip The contacts: Maria Assimakopoulou +32 2 295 9842, Roger Nunn +32 2 295 3647 2 Tuesday 13 March: New EU Consumer Strategy 2007-2013 – Making the Single Market work for Consumers The news: The new Commissioner for Consumer Affairs Meglena Kunava will set out her plans for the most fundamental overhaul of EU consumer policy since its inception in the 1980s. The new Consumer Strategy 2007-2013 sets out plans to shift the emphasis of the EU Single Market policy so it more effectively delivers value and choice for citizens at the point of delivery – the check-out till. By making consumer outcomes the guiding standard for policy decisions the Strategy will hit two birds with one stone: more efficient resource allocation and competitiveness on the one hand, and increased consumer satisfaction and increased legitimacy for the EU on the other. This is an important bridge between the Citizens’ Agenda and the Growth and Jobs agenda. For the last 20 years the battle over consumer policy has been focused on protection and safe trading in the high-street. In the 21st century, consumer policy must be as much about what consumers can do as what they must be safeguarded from. Consumers need better information, more transparent markets and political empowerment to act as powerful economic agents driving forward innovation and competition. They need access and opportunity, safe passage to new markets, more choice, better value and prices. The new challenges are multiple: guaranteeing real consumer choice in complex markets with consumers so often overloaded with information on prices and charges (from phone charges and electricity bills to offers by internet providers and credit institutions) they find they cannot decide what's best for them; boosting confidence and choice in online and digital markets with consumer rights that were written for another era; guaranteeing safe products in global markets with mass imports from China and beyond; making the market work for all citizens - particularly on essential services where no one should get left behind; building cross-border trust in the market - clamping down on the scams, and unfair practices that rip off consumers and undermine market confidence. And strengthening redress for consumers when things go wrong - more open cross border markets must go hand in hand with stronger systems of dispute resolution and redress. Consumers will not enjoy the benefits of the Single Market unless there are strong and effective systems in place to resolve problems with goods and services when things go wrong. The event: Press conference by the Consumer Affairs Commissioner, Mrs Meglena Kuneva, in the European Parliament Strasbourg, 15.30 March 13 (time tbc) .The Strategy launch is on the eve of World Consumer Rights Day March 15 2007. • Ebs coverage The sources: European Commission websites: http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/index_en.htm http://ec.europa.eu/commission_barroso/kuneva/index_en.htm The contacts: Helen Kearns +32 2 298 7638 or +32 498 98 7638 3 Wednesday 14 to Friday 16 March: International Mobile Roaming: Progress expected at an informal meeting of the 27 Telecom Ministers during CeBIT IT Fair Hannover/Germany The news: 27 European Telecom Ministers meet informally with EU Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding to make progress on the EU Regulation to reduce mobile roaming charges within the EU. General agreement is emerging on most provisions of the Regulation, with some ongoing discussions on details of the consumer protection tariff and on the possible extension of the roaming regulation to cover short messaging and data roaming. The Commission is confident that a political agreement can be reached in the weeks to come and calls on the European Parliament and the 27 Telecom Ministers to cooperate very closely to ensure that European consumers will already profit from significant cost savings when going abroad for their summer holidays this year. Whilst at CeBIT (the world's largest IT fair taking place annually in Hannover), Commissioner Reding will also attend the opening Ceremony with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, give a press conference to unveil the Commission's European strategy for dealing with Smart Radio Tags (so-called RFID-technology) and a further press conference on the policy challenges for developing Mobile TV in Europe. The event: The 15th March: Commissioner Reding's press conference on the European strategy on Smart Radio Tags (RFID) takes place in the CeBIT Convention centre, room Berlin, at 11.00 Photo opportunity at 13.40. Informal ministerial meeting of the EU Telecom Council on Roaming and on Mobile TV followed by a joint press conference of German Minister of Economy Mr. Michael GLOS at 14.00 The 16th March: Press conference on "European Policy challenges for Mobile TV" and expert conference on Mobile TV in Europe at 14.30 in the Convention Centre Room 17 The sources: European Commission websites: For Roaming http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/roaming/index_en.htm For Commission events at CeBIT and for related press materials: http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/events/cebit_07/index_en.htm The contacts: Martin Selmayr +32 2 298 1230; Mona Lund +32 2 299 9020 4 Friday 16 March: The European ICT Prize The news: The European Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Prize is awarded annually to companies for new and imaginative products and services based on "digital technologies". This covers the converging fields of computer, media and communications industries – considered to be among the driving forces in modern economies. One of the Grand Prize Nominee of the 2007 ICT Prize is the A3M Tsunami Alarm System, which alerts subscribers directly via their mobile phones of an impending tsunami, within minutes of the earthquake that will provoke it.