Proposals to cut European mobile charges

Holidaymakers in Europe could soon be able to take advantage of lower costs for using mobile phones abroad.

A member of the European Commission made the proposals for the lower roaming charges, which will be voted on next spring, possibly in time for a summer implementation.

The changes could see the cost of sending a text message from a foreign EU country fall from an average of 23p to around 9p, while voice calls could be cut from 36p to 27p a minute.

Viviane Reding, the EU telecoms commissioner, criticised the mobile industry for failing to reduce roaming charges voluntarily and indicated that the changes could prove useful for business travellers.

"Using your mobile phone abroad in the EU should not cost unjustifiably more than at home, whether for making calls, sending texts or surfing the web," Ms Reding said.

"Europe's 37 million tourists and 110 million business travellers are waiting for the promise of the borderless single market to finally have a positive impact on their phone bills."

The changes could prove particularly welcome for British tourists in Spain, where the cost of sending a text home can be close to 50p.

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