The first exchange of views on the reform carried out on Tuesday 29 January in the European Parliament confirmed the doubts over the project already raised by other actors.
The debate was held in the Industry Committee of the Parliament, which is responsible for the most relevant legislative proposals made by the Commission. It is in charge of analysing the amendments to the framework directive for electronic communications, which contains the bulk of the reform. The Committee also has its say on the new authority proposed by Reding.
The view expressed by the members of the Committee was generally critical towards the reform, regardless of the political affiliation of the MEPs. Representatives of the three main parties in the Parliament - the EPP, PES and ALDE - voiced concerns about the economic consequences of functional separation. "Who will pay the cost of the shift from the current system?," asked several MEPs.
Moreover, Committee members expressed doubts over the necessity of the new European regulator, considering it as a dangerous source of conflicts of competence with national authorities. The possible merger of the new body with the existing European agency for information security (ENISA) was also questioned.
In a study recently presented in the Industry Committee, the spectrum management reform was also criticised. "The proposals set out by the Commission meet some goals that will generally be beneficial for Europe, but there are some gaps," reads the report, which questions the market approach adopted by Reding for the reallocation and supports economic advantages stemming from a free spectrum.
