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The Computerization Of European Customs
by William New
Twelve nations in the European Union are on track to meet the June 30 deadline to implement the computerized system for customs transit, according to the European Commission, the EU regulatory arm. The laggards are Austria, Greece and Luxembourg, the commission noted in a report released on Tuesday.
In addition, of the seven non-EU European countries that have joined the convention on a common transit procedure, three (Norway, Switzerland and the Czech Republic) have implemented or are implementing the system. Poland may have particular difficulties, the commission said in a statement.
Other EU candidate countries have presented plans for implementation, which are required by the time of their accession into the European Union. The commission will ask any countries whose systems are not operational to introduce ad hoc ways to ensure proper transit movements.
Frits Bolkestein, who is in charge of customs for the European Commission, said the system will fight fraud and cut bureaucracy. The system is a tool for customs to speed and monitor transit using advanced computer systems and electronic data processing.
A Gloomy Short-Term Forecast In Europe
The European Union and the region that uses the euro as currency ended 2002 on a "very weak note" due to geo-political tensions, volatile oil prices and a lengthy drop in the stock markets, the European Commission said on Tuesday.
In its spring economic forecasts for 2003 and 2004, the commission said an end to current global uncertainties by summer could trigger a moderate recovery in the second half of the year.
The spring forecast for countries that hope to join the European Union was a little brighter because on average they sustained solid growth despite international economic sluggishness.
European Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin on Friday announced a roughly $13 million program to boost candidate countries' participation in EU research. That will include funding for nanotechnology, information technology and e-government.
On Thursday, Busquin released the 2003 Eurobarometer for the candidate countries, which provides data on public perceptions of science and technology.
The European Innovation Front
The European Commission has published a study examining how to update EU innovation policies to make them more effective.
"Innovation in a knowledge-based economy is diverse," European Enterprise and Information Society Commissioner Erkki Liikanen said in a statement. "It is no longer exclusively based on research, science and technology or enterprise and ingenuity."
"It is increasingly based on other factors, such as organizational or presentational innovation, where the focus is not necessarily on technological aspects of new products or services, but on intangible value added, improved market position, or increased productivity," Liikanen added.
The objective of innovation policy must be to determine where the bottlenecks are occurring and propose solutions, he said.
Meanwhile, at an October conference on information society technologies in Milan, Italy, a total of $700,000 in prizes will be awarded for innovations, the European Commission announced. The European Council of Applied Sciences and Technology provides the prizes. The deadline for submissions is May 5. The 20 winners will be selected based on criteria such as technical excellence, innovative content, business planning and potential for improving competitiveness.
And in other news, global launches of advanced wireless networks are set to peak in 2004, though many regions may not have coverage until 2007, Allied Business Intelligence reported. The group looked at major operators' strategies in six regions and at projected deployments of various communications technologies.
Data Protection, Surveillance Cause Stir In Europe
European governments have taken a series of actions in recent weeks on issues related to privacy and surveillance, according to the Brussels, Belgium, office of the Hunton and Williams law firm.
Spain proposed a directive to require airlines and shipping companies to collect and transfer data on all passengers to law enforcement agencies of destination countries. The European Court of Human Rights ruled in the case, Peck v. United Kingdom, that the disclosure of video surveillance should be restricted.
And in the United Kingdom, the department of trade and industry published an online document on the implementation of the new privacy and electronic communications directive.
In addition, German data-protection officials passed several resolutions at their March 27-28 conference in Dresden, including one criticizing computer-security measures proposed by the Trusted Computing Platform Alliance.
The alliance consists of companies such as Microsoft, IBM and Intel that are working on a set of technical specifications for computer security, the law firm said. But German authorities showed concern that the use of central servers could control hardware, software and data.
Canada Implementing 24-Hour Cargo Rule
Elinor Caplan, Canada's minister of national revenue, on Friday announced a rule requiring electronic submission of customs data on marine cargo 24 hours in advance.
The decision, which a statement said came after extensive consultation with industry officials, will apply to ocean carriers and freight forwarders. They will have to electronically file information before loading cargo in the foreign port.
The data will be processed through automated targeting systems, and using risk assessment, certain containers will be tagged for inspection before loading. The new rule takes effect this month, giving the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, carriers and freight forwarders, and the importers and brokers time to prepare.
Separately on Thursday, U.S. and Canadian customs agencies and Canada's two largest railways signed a declaration of principles to further enhance security at the border and ensure secure rail access to the United States. The agreement outlines principles for targeting, screening and examining rail shipments to the United States.
U.S. Tech Firms Back Offshore Tax Break
Technology companies in Silicon Valley are pushing three bills in Congress that would reduce the tax rate on overseas profits sent back to U.S. parent companies, Siliconvalley.com reports. The bills would cut the rate to 5.25 percent for one year, down from 35 percent.
The companies lobbying Congress include Hewlett-Packard, Intel and Sun Microsystems. They argue that the legislation would stimulate the tech industry. Tech firms contend that the 35 percent tax is prohibitively high.
U.N. Schedules Security-, Tech-Related Meetings
The United Nations will hold the second "international forum on trade facilitation" May 14-15 in Geneva, with a look at the simplification, harmonization, automation and acceleration of the cross-border flow of goods and information in the new security-minded environment.
The event will have a special focus on developing countries and the additional burdens placed on them by new security requirements.
Parallel to the forum, the European Patent Office and the U.N. Center for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business will hold workshops on technical issues and intellectual property rights. The event also will involve officials from the World Trade Organization.
Elsewhere, the U.N. Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) will hold its next working session on e-commerce in New York on May 5-9. The UNCITRAL Web site has the draft agenda, the latest draft of the convention on electronic contracting being negotiated at the body and comments by the International Chamber of Commerce on the need for a convention.
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