Dutch MPs have voted in favour of a motion calling for action to cut the cost  of international calls and text messages from the Netherlands to other EU member states.

A majority of MPs backed the proposal drawn up by D66 parliamentarian Jan Paternotte, demanding the government campaign for change at a European level.

Owners of Dutch mobile telephones have been able to telephone, send text messages and surf within the EU for the cost of a domestic subscription since 15 June.

However, the cost of calling other EU countries from the Netherlands remains high and this too needs to be tackled, MPs say.

In Finland, for example, calls cost as little as 10 cents a minute while in Germany they can mount up to €2. In the Netherlands, the cost of phoning another EU country ranges from 23 to 75 cents.

Earlier this month, the European parliament’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee voted  to lower charges on calls and text messages from phones in different EU countries as part of a draft telecoms bill.