Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to appear before the committee. We can leave the defamation to the weekend. I do not think we need to go over that here. I welcome the opportunity to discuss the forthcoming Telecommunications and Energy Councils on 6 and 9 June, respectively.

I will begin by dealing with the Telecommunications Council. I understand the committee already has a copy of the draft agenda and I understand COREPER is expected to finalise an agreed agenda later today. The Hellenic Presidency will provide the Council with a progress report on the proposal on a single telecoms market, also known as the connected continent package. There will also be a progress report and orientation debate on the Commission proposal on the network and information security directive, which deals with the very topical and important issue of cyber security. Under the any other business part of the agenda, the Presidency will provide the Council with information on the files relating to the digital agenda scoreboard, electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions, measures to reduce the costs of deploying high-speed electronic communications networks and accessibility to public sector bodies’ websites. Since the last Telecommunications Council in December, the Hellenic Presidency has overseen agreement being reached on both the regulation on electronic identification and trust services and the directive relating to broadband cost reduction. Both of these legislative proposals have also been signed off by Parliament.

The directive on accessibility to public sector bodies’ websites has not been discussed in any detail since the Irish Presidency and it is expected that the incoming Italian Presidency will begin a re-examination of this proposal.

No discussion or debate is anticipated on these issues. There will be a lunchtime discussion devoted to the issue of Internet governance.

The Commission’s connected continent package was proposed in September 2013 as a further measure to achieve a move towards a single market for electronic communications. It has provoked a widespread and strong reaction across the full range of players in the EU telecommunications market. This was the subject of a political debate at last December’s Ministerial Council meeting where the vast majority of member states raised concerns regarding various aspects of the proposals, including the lack of consultation by the Commission prior to drafting.

The Greek Presidency initiated an indepth examination of the proposals in March last at Council working group level. The working group is still only involved in a first reading of the full text and progress to date has been laborious. A number of key concerns have emerged, many of which mirror concerns outlined by my officials when they briefed this committee on the proposal in October last year. In its contribution to date on the Council working group discussions, Ireland has highlighted its concerns regarding the overall thrust of the package and focused in particular on the need to safeguard national competence in critical policy areas such as spectrum, which, as we have previously outlined to the committee, we see as a valuable and strategically vital piece of national infrastructure. As of now, the Presidency does not intend to have a debate on this measure at Council.

The network and information security directive relates to cyber security and proposes that member states be required to adopt national network information security strategies, designate national competent authorities and establish computer emergency response teams, CERTs. It sets out standardised procedures for dealing with the increasingly sensitive area of cyber security and proposes an enabling power for the Commission to specify mandatory reporting obligations in relation to security breaches on public administrations and on critical infrastructure operators. While the Hellenic Presidency has proposed a debate on this proposal at Council, it has not as yet indicated the orientation of the debate and has not framed any specific questions to help guide the discussion. It is likely that the debate will focus on outstanding areas of concern in order to allow the incoming Italian Presidency accelerate the examination of this proposal.

In principle, this proposal is to be welcomed from an Irish perspective. We are seeking clarifications on the precise scope of the directive and we want to ensure that all relevant market participants are included within the scope of this directive, including those in the public sector. One concern we share with a number of other like-minded member states is that the operational co-operation through the proposed co-operation mechanism is too ambitious given the different levels of capability that exist in individual member states. Operational co-operation, involving the provision and sharing of sensitive operational information between member states is best facilitated through trust and confidence building measures.

At Council, I will reiterate that Ireland would favour a regime of voluntary reporting of cyber incidents as opposed to the mandatory reporting envisaged in the proposal. There is concern that a mandatory approach could amount to a compliance oriented approach by industry with a focus to merely report what is legally necessary with adverse implications for existing voluntary arrangements. It could also result in a regulatory burden with implications for the competitiveness of European industry. Improving member states’ capacity to effectively deal with network security is essential for a secure digital single market and we will continue to contribute to the discussions on this directive at the Council working group to ensure the final directive is best suited to achieve this objective.

The Presidency proposes to hold a lunchtime debate on Internet governance. Internet governance has long been taken to mean the setting of rules and principles that govern the operation of the Internet. In recent years, the debate has become more politicised and contested, due mainly to the growing centrality of the Internet in the daily economic, cultural and political lives of citizens. Earlier this year, the European Commission published a communication on Internet policy principles, which reflects the Commission’s growing interest in this area and its belief that an EU position is required. Considerable work has already been done in this area by bodies such as the OECD, the Council of Europe and the EU, and much can be learned from what already exists and has been agreed by member states. Ireland has and will continue to maintain a strong line on the pressing need to preserve a free and open Internet. As Internet governance encompasses a wide range of subjects, including content, data protection, intellectual property law and network security, it is important that all relevant stakeholders are brought on board at a national and EU level.