CEN and CENELEC welcome the approval of the European Parliament Report on a Standardization Strategy for the Single Market

Authored by MEP Adam Bielan (ECR, PL), the report lays out the views of the IMCO committee on the European Standardization Strategy published by the European Commission in 2022 and, more generally, on the future of the standardization system in Europe.  

CEN and CENELEC provided extensive contributions in the preparation of the Report, together with many other relevant stakeholders: Director General Elena Santiago Cid spoke in January 2023 at the hearing on Standardization in the Single Market held by the Committee during the drafting of this report, sharing the two organizations’ perspective. Vice President Policy of CENELEC, Ewa Zielińska, was also a speaker at a roundtable conversation on the EU Standardization Strategy hosted by the rapporteur MEP Adam Bielan in March 2023.  

The result is a balanced and comprehensive report. In particular, we welcome its emphasis on the essential function standards play in the Single Market: they support European industry and enhance the safety of all citizens. The European Standardization System is an open, transparent, and inclusive system based on the national delegation principle, thus ensuring that all European countries have a prominent voice in standards development.  

The well-functioning public private partnership CEN and CENELEC enjoy with the EU institutions is a key part of the success of the European Standardization System. On this basis, we actively participate in the Task Force between the Commission, the European Free Trade Area and the European Standardization Organisations to collectively enhance this partnership and the standardization process.  

On the 30th Anniversary of the Single Market, we fully share the European Parliament’s commitment to strengthening the Single Market and are proud to contribute to its smooth functioning by leveraging on the power of standards.