Brussels, 23/08/2001 (Agence Europe) - The Belgian EU Council Presidency foresees a series of conferences this autumn organised by Mrs Aelvoet, the Minister for Consumer Interests, Mr Picqué, the Consumer Protection Minister, and Mr Deleuze, the State Secretary for Energy. As Secretary General of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Lambert Verjus, states in the brochure announcing these events, the conferences will place emphasis on "providing a healthy market regulation for goods and services, furthering a competitive business climate and conducting an active policy of consumer protection". Thus:
- On 13 and 14 September there will be a conference on "the Information Society, and economic and social cohesion" held in Bruges. Discussions will result in recommendations to governments and to firms for "reinforcing the availability of the new technologies to all players in society, so as to ensure better social cohesion and more -and better- jobs".
- On 27 and 28 September, in Brussels, a conference will be held on "right of access to energy, environmental protection and opening of the electricity and gas market". It will mainly allow discussion on the imperatives of energy policy (energy efficiency, renewable energies, etc.), "public service obligations" and the protection of the least well-off after liberalisation of these markets. The brochure also notes that, after the 1996 Directive on the internal electricity market and that of 1998 for the gas market, it is now a question of speeding up the process, and that this acceleration requires changes to the original Directives. It adds: "there is every reason to believe that the Commission will be putting forward a new Directive" during Belgian Presidency.
- From 4 to 6 October in Brussels, there will be a conference on "the consumer's involvement in the single market". It will tackle themes such as product safety, the role of the consumers' organisations, "responsible" consumption and "sustainable" consumption. Proposals will be made to improve consumer protection, through a tight collaboration between public services, companies and citizens.
- On 11 and 12 October, "Competition Days" will be held in Antwerp. One such day will be on the theme "pharmaceutical products and competition", in collaboration with the European Parliament and the European Commission. Another will be on "modernisation of EU competition law: the role of the national competition authorities" and "regulatory bodies and competition authorities".
- On 13 and 14 November, in Charleroi, a conference will take place on "consumer credit and Community harmonisation". It will allow reflection on "revision of the Community guideline on consumer credit" and on questions such as the cross-border dimension of credit and indebtedness.
- On 29 November, in Liège, the subject of a conference will be "a Community Patent for Europe". The Belgian Ministry for Economic Affairs affirms that "those in charge of policy have no right to disappoint the expectations" of the those involved in European innovation, "who continue to call for moderate cost and a single, reliable legal system". It gives its assurance that it "intends to contribute to the settlement of that issue".
(Information: Marleen Van de Zande, Maryse Ban den Bossche, 43 rue du Corner, 1040 Brussels. E-mail: conferenties@mineco.fgov.be Website: http: //mineco.fgvo.be).