Privacy & Information Security Law Blog

On May 26, 2016, the European Parliament approved a resolution calling for the European Commission to reopen negotiations with U.S. authorities on the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield (“Privacy Shield”), and to implement the recommendations of the Article 29 Working Party (“Working Party”) on the draft Privacy Shield adequacy decision.

The Working Party had previously published its recommendations in an Opinion regarding the draft decision issued by the European Commission on adequacy of the protection provided by the Privacy Shield. In the Opinion, the Working Party highlighted a number of key issues concerning access to European personal data by law enforcement and government agencies, and also recommended a number of changes to ensure that European citizens’ data are adequately protected.

The European Parliament’s resolution, although not binding, calls on the European Commission to “fully implement” the recommendations expressed by the Working Party in its Opinion.

It remains to be seen whether further changes will be made to the draft Privacy Shield adequacy decision, given the European Commission’s stated intention to have it in operation by summer 2016.