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  3. The romantic image of the trusty postman, delivering letters to the farthest

The romantic image of the trusty postman, delivering letters to the farthest

游客2023-12-16  16
问题     The romantic image of the trusty postman, delivering letters to the farthest-flung corners of the land, makes the reform of postal services a sensitive subject. This is especially true when the impetus for reform comes from the European Union. This month the European Parliament starts work on a directive, drawn up by the European Conmrission, to remove the last monopolies in postal markets by 2009—the final stage in a slow and laborious liberalisation that began in 1992. Directives in 1997 and 2002 chipped away at the centuries’ old monopolies enjoyed by national operators, and the proposed new law will open the whole market to competition by abolishing the" reserved area"on mail weighing less than 50 grams. But although the legislative wheels are in motion, some countries are as skeptical as ever.
    The commission says it has deliberately pursued postal liberalisation at a slower pace than other market openings. This is partly due to its technical complexity. Unlike in telecoms, post has no physical network to share. Many countries had to create independent regulators from scratch in order to monitor market access and prices. The size of the heavily unionised postal industry also prompted caution. It employs some 5 million people directly and indirectly, and its turnover is roughly 1% of Europe’s combined GDP.
    But arguably the biggest drag on liberalisation is old-fashioned resistance to open markets, plus a dash of reverence for letter writing. One opponent of the 2009 deadline talks of "a noble industry that we want to protect" and lauds the virtues of pen and paper. All postal operators recognise, however, that the epistolary habit has taken a hit from the Internet. With deadening pragmatism, the commission says liberalisation will improve quality and choice and reduce state subsidies.
    Countries that have already opened their markets, such as Sweden and Britain, agree. Since Sweden’s Posten AB was privatised in 1993, prices for business customers have fallen by 30%, though they have risen for consumers. The postal network has been extended, with new outlets in supermarkets and longer opening hours. Proponents of reform argue that Sweden, which has one of the lowest population densities in the EU, disproves the argument that rural countries cannot both have open markets and provide a standard service for everyone.
    But France, Spain, Italy and other countries worry that abolishing the "reserved area" will damage this universal-service obligation. Last month Franois Loos, France’s industry minister, said 2009 was "an indicative date" for competition rather than a firm deadline. A spokesman for PostEurop, a lobby group representing European postal operators, says several countries would prefer a deadline of 2012 at the earliest, with the who]ly implausible argument that more time is needed to researeh the impact of liberalisation.
    The commission knows a delaying tactic when it sees one. Operators have had years to prepare for liber alisation. But some countries, such as Greece and Luxembourg, seem to want to protect their national monopolies at any eost. The attitudes of central European countries are more difficult to predict. Their governments supported the liberal services directive, which favoured their mobile, comparatively cheap workforces, but have expressed doubts about opening protected home markets to competition.
    Incumbents may have less to fear from competition than they think, however.  In countries with open markets, the former monopolists have remained dominant. In Britain the Royal Mail has 96.5% of the mar ket; in Sweden Posten AB has 91.5%. Regulators do not expect big changes in either country. Indeed, some advocates of liberalisation worry that open postal markets will fail to attraet new entrants and that elimi- nating the reserved area will not guarantee competition.
    The debate over market opening is an opportunity to find out what people really want from their postal services and a chance to rethink how they work, says Michael Critelli, the boss of Pitney Bowes, a company that makes postal equipment and software. Some people might, for example, choose to have domestic mail delivered to their offices on weekdays, he suggests.  But such innovations will happen only if national governments can be discouraged from stamping the commission’s proposals "return to sender". [br] Which of the Mlowing can best summarize the passage?
选项 A、The reform of postal services is undergoing in Europe.
B、Protectionism hampers the reform of Europe’s postal services.
C、Monopolies of postal services are to be broken up.
D、The European market of postal services is open to competition.
答案 B
解析 主旨题。文章开篇提及“邮政业改革已成为一个敏感的话题”，之后对该项改革进行了简要介绍，末句指出：虽然立法已纳入议事日程，但有些国家仍然持怀疑态度。第二段及第三段 分析自由化进程进展缓慢的几个原因：技术问题、雇员人数问题、对市场开放的抵触和对书信的看重。第四、五、六段分别介绍了欧洲各国对改革持有的不同态度。最后两段试图打消“邮政业在职人员担心竞争”的顾虑。可以看出本文的重点在于说明欧洲各国对于改革的担心，文章没有明确说明改革是否能够进行下去，而[C]和[D]则直接给出改革的结果，与文章不符，排除。[A]是一个笼统概念，范围过大，排除。[B]“贸易保护主义阻碍欧洲邮政业改革”言简意赅，说明改革受阻的原因，符合全文主旨，故为答案。
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