The rapporteur welcomed the successful conclusion of the conciliation procedure and commented that, even though the budget would not permit any major strides forward, it would contribute to the development of the information society. He was also delighted that the revision of the ‘lists of projects of common interest’ would occur before 31 December 2001. Within this revision, priority should still be given to generic services and to telematics for the environment and health. The rapporteur stressed once again that the problem of satellite services should be tackled better in the future. While qualifying the compromise reached between Parliament and Council as very good, Mr Bangemann noted the need to create trans-European networks (in the areas of transport, energy and telecommunications) in order to draw every possible benefit from completion of the single market. He also stressed the importance of developing satellite services, particularly to reach outlying regions. He considered in this respect that content had been dealt with satisfactorily. Finally, he was prepared to do everything in his power to ensure that the list of priorities could be updated in 2000.

The Council declared that it was not in a position to take over all of Parliament’s amendments to the common position of 21 March 1996 relating to the decision in question. The Conciliation Committee would therefore be convened under the terms of the codecision procedure (Article 189b of the Treaty).

The rapporteur, Mr Hoppenstedt (EPP, D), supported the 27 amendments made to the common position of the Council, especially those dealing with the taking of decisions jointly by Parliament and the Council for the selection of projects relating to trans-European telecommunications networks. Commissioner Bangemann, for his part, announced that the Council would reject the amendments, with the result that Parliament would have to initiate the conciliation procedure.

The rapporteur, Mr HOPPENSTEDT, noted that SMEs were not encouraged to acquire the necessary means to make use of trans-European telecommunications networks and believed that the global transnational development of these networks was being neglected. Even though it was not possible a priori to define specific projects, he was insistent that priorities should be set and adopted a strategic view of the objectives of trans-European telecommunications networks. He also called for the social repercussions to be taken into account and for assurances to be given on the compatibility of the applications at European level; he also wanted to see duplication avoided. Finally, in anticipation of the common position being adopted by the Telecommunications Council on 21 March, the rapporteur wanted to see a formal debate held, with Parliament included. Commissioner BANGEMANN stated that of the 53 amendments that had been tabled he was prepared to accept 13 as they were and 15 with some modification, while rejecting a further 25. As regards comitology, he added that the Commission wanted to respect the ‘modus vivendi’ that had already been approved on this issue. He also said that the Commission had set up an information office for interested parties. As far as funding was concerned, Mr Bangemann pointed out that this had been put at some ECU 250 billion; private finance would therefore have to be called in, since the public purse could not support such a cost; finally, he supported the idea of adopting a glossary of definitions.

The Committee of the Regions: - in referring to the opinions already expressed, underlined the crucial significance of local actions associated with the information society, especially as regards the creation of new job and those efforts directed at reducing the disparities that tended to affect citizens following the introduction of new instruments. In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity the Community should therefore support local innovation and refrain from making generalised definitions as to the content of the applications, especially when it came to the planning and implementation of applications relating to the information society. - expressed its concerns about the fact that the partitioning effect of the financial instruments could in certain cases disunite the regions instead of promoting their mutual cohesion, which was the ultimate objective of the exercise. - took the view, in response to opinions expressed in the report on the role of the Community, that as far as cohesion at regional level was concerned there was a need for greater use to be made of EU expertise in the field of projects relating to the information society, especially if their theme or content had a trans-European character. - supported the objective of extending the activities of the ISPO (Information Society Project Office) to the Member States and to the regions. Indeed, their effectiveness as sources of information and as coordinators for the different parties made them particularly well suited to the role envisaged by the Commission within the Community. - believed that it was extremely important to have a presentation of the position of the applications within the trans-European telecommunications networks, given that the impact of their subject matter continued to increase. - The Committee was keen to learn from the important lessons drawn from local and regional networks, which combined citizens, SMEs and the public offices. As the links forged with the network, and especially with the bordering networks and local services, were often essential in the eyes of the consumer, the Committee hoped that quickening the pace at which solutions were developed – and the Interregional Information Society Initiative (IRISI) was a good example of this – would take precedence over the development of other types of application. The importance of having centres for developing and providing multimedia services on a regional scale needed to be taken into consideration. The success of regional projects would stimulate demand for increasing the development of other applications and of an infrastructure of the type described by the Commission. - From among the main fields of application the existence of the internet had to be taken into consideration for the development of a trans-European network serving the universities and research institutes, for as far as these establishments were concerned the objectives were practically achieved. - hoped that the call for proposals for applications of collective interest would define the services envisaged in such a way that prospective customers would understand the contents without ambiguity. - as far as basic networks were concerned the Committee drew special attention to the development of EURO-ISDN, the growth of the supply sector and the greater degree of stability, thanks to which the cost of terminal equipment using this technology would continue to fall and therefore would come within the range of a growing number of users. - stressed the importance of developing broadband wireless networks, especially in those regions where it was not practical to invest in hardwire systems for geographical reasons and so forth. - The Committee hoped that the reports would take account of regional development and of the differences that existed. It appeared to be more equitable to present the general situation of networks serving the information society and of trans-European networks on the basis of the less-favoured regions, rather than on those that were well developed.

The ESC basically endorsed the Commission proposal for a European Parliament and Council Decision. However, it put forward a number of comments. The ESC thought that the proposed projects should attach special importance to the social, cultural, educational and environmental issues. In these areas in particular a universal network serving as many of Europe’s citizens as possible was important. With special regard to the liberalisation of the telecommunications sector and the associated commercialisation of research and development programmes, the ESC felt that the projects should be continuously vetted by the Commission to see whether overall European-wide economic considerations were brought to bear within the framework of a modern, active and forward-looking industrial policy. The ESC thought that an annual report would be desirable. The trans-European networks marked a further step towards the social and economic modernisation of Europe. In this context, it would not be possible to find the requisite funds for investment unless: - European firms formed strong alliances that could operate on the world market as global players; - the principle of reciprocity was applied in world trade.