European Parliament will be flexible on Data Protection, says civil liberties chair

Claude Moraes MEP, chair of the European Parliament's influential Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee, today promised flexibility when negotiating new data protection regulation in Europe.

Speaking at a special event held this morning at Europe House in Westminster, Moraes said the negotiations had already gone on for too long, but they would not be rushed into making agreements.

The European Parliament has been hosting a series of events, open to the public, to raise awareness and allow people a chance to engage with MEP’s. Today’s session with Moraes focussed on immigration, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and the Data Protection Regulation.

At the end of the session there was a question and answer session. Chris Combemale, executive director at the DMA, spoke about the changing nature of the global economy and how the digital revolution is transforming relations between citizens and states and between consumers and businesses.

With this in mind, Combemale asked Moraes how he would approach the Trilogue negotiations as chair of the Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee. Moraes’ role will be pivotal when the Data Protection Regulation goes to Trilogue.

Moraes said, “There will be flexibility from the Parliament and from the rapporteur on the Data Protection Regulation”

In his answer Moraes was keen to emphasise that the process had already gone for far too long and that it was imperative that the regulation was finished in a timely manner. He was not, however, advocating unnecessary haste at the expense of the contents of the regulation.

Moraes promised that the parliament would be flexible and willing to negotiate, although this was caveated by a warning: the Parliament would not be bullied by member states. Clearly there are certain redline issues for the Parliament.

Moraes’ comments show that the Parliament has taken a hard-line position on various issues because it knows it will have to negotiate in Trilogue. By taking this approach it can start high, and negotiate down, to arrive at a desirable position.

This is great news for one-to-one marketers as it suggests that many of their fears will not be born out as the Trilogue negotiations will, hopefully, ensure that there is a better balance between the privacy of consumers and the interests of businesses, who deliver the services and products that consumers want.