Anger at bid to slow postal liberalisation

Private courier companies have reacted angrily to signs that MEPs will put the brakes on plans to liberalise the EU's postal sector in a vote next week.

But the cautious approach to opening the market apparently favoured by many MEPs has been welcomed by representatives of national post offices across the EU.

UK Socialist rapporteur Brian Simpson believes the full Parliament will support the protectionist position staked out by its transport committee, which voted last month to limit the number of areas to be opened to competition in 2001, when it considers his report at its mini plenary session in Brussels on 8-9 May.

This has been greeted with dismay by private courier firms. 'We are extremely disappointed, but not particularly surprised, by the transport committee's position. Liberalisation can only be a good thing for the sector,' says Geoff Cruikshanks of DHL.

National post office representatives are, however, jubilant. 'We are delighted with Mr Simpson's approach. The postal sector must not be treated like a laboratory where trials can be conducted and errors made,' says Edward Diane of France Poste.

After protracted discussions, the Commission unveiled a cautious step-by-step approach to liberalisation last year in a draft directive providing for minimal competition by the turn of the century. But even that softly-softly approach is likely to be deemed too rash by the assembly.

Simpson, all of whose proposed amendments were supported by the committee, wants both direct mail, which accounts for 17% of all letters posted and 12% of postal revenue, and the distribution of incoming cross-border mail kept under monopoly control.

He argues that lucrative parts of the postal business must be reserved for state-owned firms in order to allow them to fund universal service - the principle that every address should be reachable by post. 'If we tell state companies that they must guarantee universal service, then we also have to make sure that they have the money to keep that promise,' says Simpson.

Under the Commission plan, national post offices would be allowed to maintain their exclusive hold over the collection, sorting and delivery of basic letter services, but direct mail and the distribution of incoming post would be opened to competition from the year 2001, subject to a review of the market scheduled to take place in 1998.

Simpson wants any commitment to stage two of the liberalisation process to be scrapped and the proposed date for the review postponed indefinitely.

Co-rapporteur, UK Socialist Angela Billingham, also wants MEPs to amend proposals to force postal firms to compensate customers for poor services and says member states should be allowed to decide whether or not to impose a uniform price on basic postal services.