Data moving centre-stage
The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), Peter Hustinx, has released his 2014 programme of strategic priorities for legislative consultation in Europe.
The EDPS has a statutory duty to advise the Commission and the Council on proposals for new legislation as well as his ongoing monitoring of data protection in Europe. He has highlighted the need for “early assessment” in a wide range of EU policies.
As new, ever more powerful, technologies evolve and as national technical demarcations reduce, data management and data protection considerations are now central to the EU’s legislative work programme, particularly in the area of the internal market.
The key areas of work identified by the EDPS include: a new legal framework for data protection; rebuilding trust in global data flow; bolstering economic growth and the digital agenda; further development in the area of freedom, security and justice; financial sector reform; and fraud and banking secrecy.
Alongside this, the Directorate-General for Communications, Networks, Content and Technology is working ahead on Europe-wide network platforms and an integrated cloud strategy for Europe – essentially the technological side of future data storage and protection in Europe.
All of this work at the European level, which will decide who can store what, and how, is of considerable importance to Ireland. It is not only important in terms of overall data protection for Irish citizens but because Ireland has become a major centre for global and Europe-wide data assembly and storage.
