ECOS calls for an inter-institutional dialogue on standardisation

ECOS has joined the European Parliament and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) in calling on the European Commission to establish the long-awaited inter-institutional dialogue on standardisation.

The dialogue will bring together the European Commission, Parliament, and Council, the EESC, the Committee of the Regions, together with the European standardisation organisations, and the Annex III organisations (ANEC, ECOS, ETUC and SBS). The promise of this dialogue was made in the 2017 Annual Union Work Programme for European standardisation.

ECOS believes this should be a structured dialogue, where recommendations can be made to act proactively. It should assist the European Commission with planning political and technical activities related to standardisation including both the mandating and referencing processes, and the development of the AUWP.

The dialogue should also review the progress made in relation to Regulation (EU) 1025/2012, especially on transparency and inclusiveness, and consider improvements to the standardisation system which are still needed.

The parties involved should consider the extent to which the contribution of the Annex III organisations to the standardisation process has been facilitated and taken into account, and should discuss issues related to the future EU financial contribution to the ESOs and the Annex III organisations.

In light of the ECJ ruling on James Elliott, the dialogue should serve as a platform to discuss key issues arising from the public-private partnership, such as the Commission’s overview on mandated standardisation work, the public availability of harmonised standards, and the internationalisation of standards.