European Parliament calls Commission to act on Broadband for All

Organised by MEP Danuta Huebner and hosted by Dutch MEP Lambert Van Nistelrooij, both from the EP's REGI committee, ESOA and COPA COGECA co-organised a breakfast in the European Parliament, calling on the European Commission to take action to stimulate achievement of its 2013 Digital Agenda Target of broadband for all. 48 regional representatives participated in the event, which produced the following conclusions:

1. Satellite broadband is a viable solution that can connect between 1-2 million households in 2013 alone IF the Commission takes concrete steps to assist its penetration into rural and isolated areas.
2. The EC needs to take concrete actions to raise awareness about such solutions amongst regions and to aggregate and stimulate demand.
3. 13 million European farmers require Internet connectivity to complete administration, comply with government control, be integrated into society and see prospects of growth. Their main responsibility is food production and they cannot do this effectively if they lose time and resources due to not being online.

MEP Van Nistelrooij opened the debate holding up a plastic card that had been given to MEPs by Commissioner Kroes at the start of her mandate. A quote from his own press release a week before the event sums up his view: "During her appointment as EU Commissioner for the Digital Agenda in 2009, Ms Kroes gave MEPs an overview of her six key performance targets, noting she wanted to be judged on accomplishing them by the end of the term. The first promise: 100% basic broadband coverage in the EU. I want to know if the Commissioner thinks she is still on track. So far, the results are insufficient. We need new incentives. With the European elections of 2014 ahead, it is time to take stock and make the needed adjustments."

The following recommendations were made during the debate:

• MEP Van Nistelrooij called for a Commission website to transparently provide information to rural citizens on all options for rural broadband in their countries;
• ESOA called for "cooperation in a fast-track mode" saying the Commission must a) communicate to regions on the relative benefits of using inexpensive satellite solutions immediately in rural areas, b) reiterate the eligibility of satellite terminals for broadband funding and c) produce guidelines for regions as to how they can access and procure satellite solutions which are inherently different from other more well-known solutions.
• COPA COGECA called for tailor-made solutions under the 2nd pillar of the Common Agricultural Policy for rural farmers who need solutions such as satellite in order to be more effective and grow as SMEs and noted the need for cooperation with both DG CNECT and AGRI;
• ICT must be a 4th Thematic priority in the ongoing trilogue discussions between EU Parliament/Council/Commission on cohesion policy, given the potential for growth arising from this sector and from overcoming Europe's digital divide.
• Structural funds for the next financial period must be available for broadband for all 27 EU Member States and not just the developing ones as proposed by the Commission. Specifically the German municipalities called for this noting that even in this Member State, where broadband coverage is considered as almost complete, there are still numerous rural areas with no coverage at all, who would benefit from satellite solutions.
• North Sweden representatives noted the importance of decent speeds even for rural users.

Downloads:
> Speech by Michel de Rosen

Photos from the Event: