João Cadete de Matos, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ANACOM, took over as chair of the European Regulators Group for Postal Services (ERGP) during 2019.
The ERGP programme for 2019 was fully implemented, with emphasis on the approval of the Opinion on the review of the regulatory framework for postal services. Reports on cross-subsidy practices in the postal sector, quality of service, consumer protection and complaint handling, key postal sector indicators and development of postal networks and access practices were also approved. The working programme for 2020 and the ERGP mid-term strategy for the 2020-2022 three-year period were also approved.
Within the scope of the chairmanship, ANACOM organised and hosted the plenary meeting of the ERGP, which was held in Ponta Delgada on 28 June 2019. This meeting was of particular relevance, as a result of which the Opinion on the review of the regulatory framework for postal services was approved. In this Opinion, the ERPG advocates a forward-looking perspective for the regulatory framework, taking into account technological developments and changes in demand that are already taking place, and which will intensify in the future. The ERPG advocates that the new regulatory framework for postal services should only allow regulatory interventions in the event of current or potential market failures. The main objective of regulation should be to ensure the smooth functioning of markets to enhance competition, as well as the provision of a universal service to guarantee the availability of a minimum set of postal services of a specified level of quality and at an affordable price. In the Opinion, the importance of the new regulatory framework for Member States and national regulators to be given flexibility to address problems specific to their national markets is stressed.
The plenary meeting was preceded by an internal workshop on that Opinion, held on 27 June. On that same day, the joint workshop ERGP - Postal Union of the Americas, Spain and Portugal (UPAEP) on "Regulatory Challenges in Europe and the Americas" also took place. In this workshop, which was attended by about 120 representatives from about 50 countries, presentations were made on the European and American postal markets and international issues in the postal sector were discussed, namely the future of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) and the terminal dues system, with the participation of the European Commission (EC), the US State Department and the Chinese Government.
One of the key moments of ANACOM's chairmanship was the organisation and chairmanship of the second edition of the Stakeholders Forum of the ERPG, which brought together more than 200 representatives of the main entities involved in the postal sector in Brussels to discuss the challenges facing the sector in Europe and worldwide, as well as the responses that postal regulators and the EC can provide to overcome such challenges. This Forum presented and discussed ERGP’s proposed work programme for 2020, as well as the ERGP’s proposed medium-term strategy for 2020-2022. The future of regulation in the sector and how e-commerce is changing the market and postal regulation were also discussed. The regulation of the international market, with emphasis on the matter of remuneration paid between operators, was another of the issues highlighted. The Forum was attended by Timo Pesonen, Director-General of DG GROW of the EC, who highlighted the EC's priorities for the future of the postal sector, notably in the implementation of the regulation on cross-border parcel delivery and in the future revision of the postal services directive. Bishar Hussein, Director-General of the International Secretariat of the UPU, was also present and highlighted the importance of including all postal operators in the UPU.
Also noteworthy is the organisation of the public workshop on "Data Driven Regulation of Postal Markets". Over 170 participants discussed what indicators and information are needed to regulate the postal market and how to ensure greater comparability of data. An initial evaluation was also carried out of the information being collected under the regulation on cross border parcel delivery services.
ANACOM implemented some measures to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the group, including the approval of internal documents on communication and internal information sharing and the more appropriate management of the ERGP secretariat, amending and simplifying procedures.
In accordance with the operating rules of this European regulators group, the Chairman of ANACOM will act as Vice-Chairman in 2020, ensuring the continuity of the ERGP's work.
Consult:
- ERGP - European Regulators Group for Postal Serviceshttps://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?categoryId=339336
