Proposition 53K2964

Projet de loi portant insertion de l'article XII.5 dans le livre XII, "Droit de l'économie électronique" du Code de droit économique.

General information ¶

Submitted by

PS | SP the Di Rupo government

Submission date

July 23, 2013

Official page

Visit

Status

Adopted

Requirement

Simple

Subjects

EC Directive archives digitisation electronic commerce electronic signature commercial law trading operation information society single market legal code

Voting ¶

Voted to adopt

Groen CD&V Vooruit Ecolo LE PS | SP Open Vld MR

Abstained from voting

∉ N-VA LDD VB

Party dissidents ¶

• Peter Luykx (CD&V) abstained from voting.

Contact form ¶

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Discussion ¶

Nov. 14, 2013 | Plenary session (Chamber of representatives)

Full source

by Mr. Joseph George, the rapporteur, refers to his written report.

The government is well represented. Two teams for the same price!

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Minister, the present bill provides for the introduction and coordination of the legislative provisions on the electronic economy as part of the Code of Economic Law, and that will be book XII.

E-commerce is probably the fastest growing branch within our economy. Recently, UNIZO ⁇ that 20% of all retailers in Flanders already have an online access point for the sale of items. One-third of traders experience, in their own words, the increasing price awareness of customers who check online what the products cost. More than half of our compatriots, ⁇ 57%, have made an online purchase in the last 12 months. Last year it was only 45%. The e-economy is thus growing by 25% annually. 35 to 40 % of the items are goods such as clothing, leather products and footwear, as well as those sectors subject to soldering and the sealing period.

We know the beginning, but ⁇ not the end of that evolution. This is a huge challenge, both for the government and for the companies. The Internet is a beloved channel for consumers to collect information, compare prices and make purchases. It is therefore important that the retailers of the Internet see it not only as a webshop, but above all as a channel to inform and inspire.

That trade has no national boundaries, no compulsory Sunday rest, no limited soldering and sparing periods, no restrictions on linked sales and no opening hours, because the websites are open seven days at seven and 24 on 24 hours.

We find that on these points in the rapidly evolving reality, the federal government is not directly involved and holds too much to what has been acquired from the past.

For example, the electric car Tesla can already be purchased via the Internet, with instructions and billing included. There is a showroom in Brussels, but with it the suit is over, because a mobile service car comes to the user at home in case of repair or maintenance. I also mention a manufacturer of women’s clothing where I recently went on stage. It realizes a large part of its revenue via the Internet, both nationally and internationally.

It is its fastest growing store and this compared with its 15 own brand stores and its 120 multi-brand stores.

We see an evolution in online purchasing behavior from intangible goods such as travel and rental to more material goods. This evolution is logical, given that the latter category also requires greater investments in logistics, warehousing, transport and legal certainty regarding payments. This creates an entirely new economic branch for entrepreneurship, employment and investment, both in national and international trade.

The digital economy is a driving force for creating economic growth and additional jobs. The VBO has predicted that with the appropriate policy measures at the national and European level, e-commerce could boost the economy by 5 % of the GDP of Europe and provide hundreds of thousands of jobs. The Internet service provider Groupon, which, among other things, offers promotions for restaurants and other items, already employs 220 people in our country. This requires a stable and coherent regulatory framework and the encouragement of private investment.

The present draft, Mr. Minister, is too much of what is and too little of what should be. A number of opportunities are addressed in this area, such as a European e-commerce market, innovation and entrepreneurship with modern and extensive network facilities, safety and protection for consumers and ⁇ , employment and cooperation forms, opportunities for SMEs in hybrid companies, dispute resolution at national and international level, and an open nature of this trade, compared to outdated trade regulations on prices and opening hours.

Compared to our neighbors, we are very average on e-commerce. This is all the more remarkable because Europe has also degraded to a second-class player in the development of the digital economy at the global level, says Pieter Timmermans of the VBO. We therefore assume that, provided that a good regulatory framework exists, at the national and European level, there are many opportunities that we currently miss here.

We will be reminded of this bill.