Lukewarm welcome for European Commission ‘Standardisation Package’
Press Release
1 June 2016
It is with mixed feelings that ECOS welcomes the European Commission’s ‘Standardisation Package’ released today. We believe that the ‘Chapeau Communication’ should have paid more attention to the need to improve the industry-driven European Standardisation System, in particular regarding transparency and inclusiveness. Considering the growing importance of standards in European policy-making and the global market, these principles are key to ensure the delivery of quality standards that reflect the needs of both economic operators and the society at large, as well as to ensure legitimacy and confidence in (harmonised) European standards.
With regards to the Annual Union Work Programme 2017, we look forward to the study on the impacts of standards on the economy and society, particularly on how to make standards publicly available and free of charge. We urge this project to start as early as January 2017. We also welcome the proposal to establish an interinstitutional dialogue in order to exchange views, especially on the implementation of European standardisation policy and Regulation (EU) 1025/2012, which we had long been calling for. In terms of concrete strategic priorities for 2017, we welcome the proposed actions, especially those related to interoperability of grids, chemicals, plastics, and packaging. We look forward to their swift and proper implementation, in support of EU Energy policies and the Circular Economy Package.
While the actual impacts will have to be assessed, the actions proposed in the Joint Initiative may contribute to facilitating the participation of societal stakeholders at both national and European level (especially Actions 9 and 10). The proposed pilot project aimed to improve the representation of societal stakeholders and SMEs in international standardisation (Action 15) also deserves attention, as the international standardisation system has much to learn from the European system regarding openness, transparency, and inclusiveness.
ECOS Director Laura Degallaix stressed: “It is crucial to ensure that the standard development process takes place in a transparent and inclusive manner, in particular when responding to European Commission standardisation requests. Today, this requires additional efforts and sometimes structural or procedural changes to the standardisation system. Whether the new package of measures will help do this remains unclear. The planned actions will also need to take into account the societal and political challenges ahead of us, including risks arising from increasing international cooperation and TTIP.”
Contact person:
Laura Degallaix, ECOS Director
laura.degallaix@ecostandard.org, +32 2 894 46 55
