Vol. 548 No. 4
89 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Public Enterprise if she will achieve the target set for her by the National Competitiveness Council of introducing revised legislation to improve the regulatory system for the telecommunications sector; and her views on the councils' opinion that the delay in bringing this Bill before the Oireachtas reflects badly on Ireland's commitment to an effective, transparent regulatory system. [5147/02]
It is my intention to bring the communications regulation Bill to Government next week and to have it published without further delay. I hope to have the Bill enacted before the Easter recess, time permitting.
With regard to the matter of Ireland's commitment to an effective, transparent regulatory system, Ireland has already implemented the current EU regulatory regime. An analysis of Ireland's progress in relation to the liberalisation of the telecommunications market is contained in the EU Commission's recently published Seventh Report on the Implementation of the Telecommunications Regulatory Package in Member States – COM 2001 706 final, 26 November 2001. The report highlights no particular difficulties in Ireland relevant to progress in other EU member states.
