04 September 2017 marks an important date for the history of 112. Today, the European Parliament's Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) voted an important piece of legislation, marking the first step towards a better functionning 112 service in Europe.
Highlights of the vote:
Among other things, the IMCO Committee voted in favour of the following:- Handset-based location: Use of the data from the handsets to improve considerably the caller location information provided to the emergency services.
- Public warning: Use of the telephone networks to send alerts to the population, facilitating the introduction of a modern Reverse-112 system.
- Transnational database: Establishment of a transnational database that includes emergency services' long numbers in order to foster transnational cooperation.
- Direct access: Access to 112 including from private networks.
- Accessibility: Better means for people with disabilities to reach the emergency services.
Next steps:- As this vote was reduced to the 40 Members of the IMCO parliamentary committee, the rest of the European Parliament is also expected to vote on the text. We estimate that this will take place in Autumn 2017.
- After the European Parliament votes on the text, the official negotiations with the Member States and the European Commission will start so as to implement the new provisions by 2020.
Context:
The vote today was on the proposal for a directive establishing the European Electronic Communications Code (EECC). This text will replace the 2009 Universal Service Directive as the main legislation in the European Union on the functionning of the European emergency number 112. |
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