Brussels, 06/07/2011 (Agence Europe) - On 5 July, the European Parliament adopted, by show of hands, a resolution to make the European citizens more aware of the potential of the European emergency number, 112. According to a Eurobarometer survey published in February 2011, only 26% of European citizens were capable of identifying 112 as the emergency services number. The resolution by Sylvana Rapti (S&D, Greece) on “universal services and the 112 emergency number” laments the fact that 112 is not being made full use of to save lives in the event of accidents on holiday, for instance. According to the text, the member states should publish the 112 number in doctors' surgeries and pharmacies, schools and universities, and in airports and railway stations. “Now when it is summer and people have holidays there is a great deal of security attached to this number, which means that people can solve their problems no matter where they are”, said Rapti. The report calls upon the European Commission to “significantly improve” caller location data, which should be timely, accurate and reliable, particularly for roaming calls, with the ultimate goal of mandatory automatic localisation for all 112 calls. The use of voice over internet protocol (VoIP) should also be tested, with a view to developing the next generation 112 system in the EU. Lastly, there is a need to reinforce interpreting services for people who do not speak the language of the country and to guarantee the accessibility of 112 to disabled and vulnerable people. (I.L./transl.fl)