22nd January 2014

EU data protection package delayed

Commissioner Reding´s package of a regulation on data protection and a directive on its enforcement is unlikely to be adopted before the May European Parliament elections. The package suffered its first serious blow last December when the Council failed to agree on several of its key aspects. Last Wednesday (22 January), the Commissioner, Greek Presidency in the Council and European Parliament´s negotiators adopted an informal roadmap, which should lead to the adoption of the package by the end of 2014. The regulation on data protection aims to harmonize data protection standards across the EU. However, it is considered too strict by several Member States, e.g. the UK or Denmark. In some Member States´ opinion, the regulation should be turned into a more flexible directive, but such change is unlikely as it would weaken the package´s harmonizing effect. Next steps in the legislative process are expected at the March Council and on March European Parliament plenary session.

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Members of the American Chamber of Commerce in the Czech Republic