EU TELECOMS commissioner Viviane Reding is targeting the mobile phone industry once again, with proposals to cut roaming charges for sending text messages by up to 60 per cent.

Ms Reding is planning to cap the charges for sending texts within the EU at 11 cent per message. She told German magazine Der Spiegel that the new caps will be in place by next summer.

Ms Reding said telephone calls will have to be billed by the second, to avoid operators charging by the minute even if the call only last a few seconds; competition for accessing the internet abroad will be increased.

Minister for Communications Eamon Ryan welcomed the proposal as "an example of co-operation across countries [working] in the consumer's interest . . . Crossing a border within the EU should not incur unnecessary financial penalties." - ( Additional reporting: Reuters)