Protecting EU citizens from mass surveillance is key in data agreements with the UK and US

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Date: May 20, 2021

Data privacy is on the agenda of the European Parliament today. Once again, Renew Europe restates the need to protect citizens' personal data.

In a resolution due to be adopted this afternoon, we raise our concerns about the Commission’s draft adequacy decisions regarding the protection of personal data by the UK. In light of the UK's past shortcomings in enforcing and implementing privacy rules, the Commission should review its decision and complete the assessment of all relevant laws and practices before issuing its final decision. There must be guarantees that EU citizens are protected from mass surveillance.

Moritz Körner, shadow on the report, says:" The UK's data protection regime is not in line with EU law. Immigration rules, indiscriminate mass surveillance, and onward transfers to third countries are the key problem zones. Should the European Commission nevertheless decide to grant the UK adequacy, it will create legal uncertainty for European businesses until the ECJ will again strike down the adequacy decision."

In another resolution up for a vote, we urge the Commission to negotiate a new, legally watertight personal data agreement with the US containing robust privacy protection from mass surveillance and legal certainty for both citizens and businesses. The European Court of Justice last year found that the US data protection framework was not essentially equivalent to EU data privacy rules, and therefore overturned the Commission's Privacy Shield Decision. The free flow of data to the US is conditional on full respect for EU privacy rules, and Renew Europe will not settle for any less.

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