Telecommunications: operator number portability and carrier pre-selection

The Committee has adopted the recommendation for second reading on the directive on number portability and carrier pre-selection (co-decision procedure). The committee endorses the proposal of the rapporteur, W.G. van VELZEN (EPP, NL), that Parliament approve the common position, subject to one amendment seeking to ensure that charges for carrier pre-selection are reasonable, so that consumers are not discouraged from using this facility. The Common Position incorporates Parliament's amendment from first reading, which introduced a right for Member States to defer the introduction of carrier pre-selection if they can prove that complying with the 1 January 2000 deadline would impose excessive burdens on certain organisations.�