EU punishes Portugal for not transposing new telecom rules
The European Commission has opened infringement proceedings against Portugal and 23 other Member States for failing to transpose the European Electronic Communications Code within the deadline.
Portugal and 23 other Member States will be subject to infringement proceedings by the European Commission for failing to transpose the European Electronic Communications Code (EECC) within the deadline set. Brussels announced the decision in a press release.
The government was supposed to have transposed the new EU telecom rules by December 21 2020, but the transposition proposal has not yet been approved by the Council of Ministers. The country is not alone: in the context of a pandemic, only Greece, Hungary and Finland have adopted the necessary measures for transposing the new directive.
Following the European Commission’s decision, Portugal and the other infringing countries will receive a formal letter requesting explanations and transposition of the measures. In a press release, Brussels explains that “Member States have two months to reply,” but it is not clear what penalty is envisaged in these situations.
Two sources familiar with the matter told ECO that the government’s proposal for the transposition of the ECC is on track to be voted at one of the next Councils of Ministers and has been ready for at least two weeks. The reason why it has not yet been discussed and approved by the government is unknown, but the pandemic has generated new priorities, and this is one of the possible justifications. However, the EECC dates from December 2018 and EU recalls that the countries “had two years” to implement it.
