The EU Council is concerned that the European Commission has still not received the list of candidates for the post of European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) from the European Commission, despite having launched the procedure in April (see EUROPE 12236/6) and the call for applications having closed on 16 May.
In a letter – addressed on 9 October last, a copy of which was sent to EUROPE – the Finnish Minister of Justice, Anna-Maja Henriksson, informed the Commission of her concerns, as well as those of the Member States, about the appointment process.
Since the death of the Italian Giovanni Buttarelli at the end of August (see EUROPE 12310/13), it was the Assistant Supervisor, Wojciech Wiewiórowski, who took over the reins of the institution until the end of his mandate, which will expire on 4 December.
The letter underlines the urgency of finalising in time the selection procedure of the next EDPS. “In practice, this would leave the EU institutions without a data protection supervisor. Given the importance all EU institutions attach to the high level of data protection, this situation should be avoided”, writes Ms Henriksson.
However, neither the EU Council nor the European Parliament have yet received from the Commission the list of three candidates it is responsible for drawing up, which would allow the two institutions to launch their own procedures to ensure this appointment, she points out.
She therefore asks the Commission to specify the timetable for the submission of this list, as well as to inform the Finnish Presidency of the EU Council of “any interim measures that the Commission is planning to undertake in order to avoid disruptions in the functioning of the EDPS”.
The Finnish Presidency also expresses its determination to proceed quickly with this appointment and, therefore, to reach an agreement with Parliament on a candidate.
The list has still not been received by the EU Council, a European source told EUROPE on Monday 14 October. Last week, at the meeting of Member States’ ambassadors to the EU (Coreper), the Commission reportedly mentioned the beginning of November for sending the list.
On Monday 14 October, a Commission spokesperson told us that the institution is aware of the urgency to complete the procedure on time and that it will send the list as soon as possible. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)