The rise of digital politics at European level is reflected in the programmes of the European political parties in view of the elections on 26 May. With the exception of the socialists, most of them put forward concrete ideas to help with this transition.
Consequently, the European People's Party (EPP) has put forward the idea of a “European cyber-brigade” to enable Europe to counter cyber attacks, such as the one that struck Estonia in 2007, the German Parliament in 2015 or the whole of Europe in 2017 with WannaCry. According to the Christian Democrats' programme, which is only available in English, this new structure would be established within a “two-year” period. Its alleged links with the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA), whose mandate has just been strengthened through the Cyber Security Act (see EUROPE 12157/5), are not specified.
The EPP also refers to the creation of a “European University Institute 4.0” combining the latest advances in technological innovation, philosophy and ethics to promote human-centred innovation.
The European Green Party (EGP) suggests the creation of a European authority whose role would be to monitor the digital sector “in order to control and limit the market power of large companies”. American giants, such as Google and Facebook are under the microscope, accused of imposing their diktat in Europe.
But the EGP programme does not say anything about how to encourage the emergence of European players who can compete with American players. On the other hand, like the EPP, it talks about a European digital tax, after the failure of negotiations on a European tax on digital services (see EUROPE 12212/6).
The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) is not proposing the creation of a new structure and is happy to list the conditions necessary for the emergence of an innovative environment: - removing virtual borders; - harmonising data protection policies; - setting up a solid framework for new technologies such as blockchain or artificial intelligence; - digitising public services by default.
The Liberals are talking about the end of geo-blocking for information and entertainment services. This idea has already been discussed in the previous Parliamentary term with mixed results, namely a directive (rather than a regulation) limited to information and news programmes and to fully-funded ‘own productions’ (see EUROPE 12159/4).
Surfing on the controversial copyright reform, ALDE reaffirms its opposition to “download filters and censorship infrastructures” (see EUROPE 12222/6). In concrete terms, the party is pushing for a “secure and reliable digital identity” for every European, along the lines of what is already being done in Estonia.
The Party of European Socialists (PES) remains relatively general in its approach to digital policies. It cautiously states in its programme that “Europe must harness the potential of the digital revolution”. It emphasizes inclusion, stressing that no one should be left out in the digital transition.
The Party of the European Left (PGE) insists on the importance of diversifying communication channels. The priority concern is to “guarantee the right to impartial and reliable information and to increase communication rights, to ensure that multinational companies and the darknet are not the only owners of communication channels”.
The Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE) does not mention digital politics in its campaign manifesto. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)