Europe's postal services market has been fully liberalised after European lawmakers today voted in favour of opening the EU market for delivering letters to full competition from 2011.
This is two years later than a proposal from the European Commission.
With a broad majority, members of the European Parliament backed plans today for the final phase of postal liberalisation that would allow competition for letters of less than 50 grammes from January 2011.
While about a dozen member states are ready to go ahead with more market opening, the issue is deeply contentious in many other countries who view liberalisation as a threat to jobs.
Postal workers in some EU states such as France have staged stoppages and rallies against the plans.
The European postal sector was opened to competition 10 years ago for the delivery of packages weighing over 350 grams. The measure was extended in 2003 to items of more than 100 grams, and in 2006 to letters weighing more than 50 grams.
The European Commission had proposed to do away with state monopolies for the delivery of letters weighing less than 50 grams by 2009 while guaranteeing postal delivery services throughout each country.
The European Union's executive arm is eager to build on the perceived success of Britain, Finland, the Netherlands and Sweden, which have already opened their postal market to competition.
It has predicted few changes for consumers, saying that new competitors would probably try to differentiate themselves from existing state-controlled post offices with lower costs and tailor-made services.
DX Ireland, an independent business-to-business provider of postal services, said today it was disappointed the EU Parliament has voted to delay the introduction of full liberalisation of the postal market by two years.
MD Kevin Galligan said: 'Competition in the aviation and telecoms sectors has been very beneficial for consumers and businesses in Ireland in recent years. Now it looks like the postal sector monopoly will continue until 2011.'
