Brussels, 04/07/2005 (Agence Europe) - With the decision to delay the search for a political agreement on the European model of a driving licence due to minority blocking by Germany, France, Austria, Poland and Denmark (EUROPE 8978), the Council neglected the consequences that this would have on citizens in terms of road safety, said Heinz Pfeifer, President of EuroCOP (European Confederation of Police), an association that represents the interests of over 600,000 police in 19 Member States. Replacing the 110 different kinds of licence that are currently used in Europe by a single model, police checks would be easier and more effective in ascertaining whether a person is authorised to drive a certain kind of vehicle. In so far as the driving licences are accepted as an identity card in many countries, the harmonisation and the introduction of security data in licences are as important as the introduction of biometric data in passports and identity cards, and the high cost argument is not acceptable, Mr Kiefer said. Germany especially is preparing to spend around EUR 600 million to bring in biometric data in passports and EUR 650 million annually for the procedure to work as it should, while the total cost of bringing in a single model of driving licence is estimated at EUR 800 million, i.e. 80 million annually over ten years. Mr Kiefer called on the British Presidency to reach a political agreement in Council as soon as possible. The Presidency has for now included the point on the indicative agenda of the Transport Council for the month of October.