Brussels, 19/05/2003 (Agence Europe) - According to a report published by the European Commission on Friday, the 1995 directive on data protection has largely achieved its aim of guaranteeing a high level of privacy, whilst facilitating the circulation of personal data within the EU. However, it appears that its late application by several Member States and the differing implementation of its provisions at national level have prevented the European economy from taking full advantage of it. In order to iron out these differences, therefore, the report proposes a work programme based on co-operation between Member States on the one hand, and between Member States and the Commission on the other, followed in 2005 by an evaluation to determine whether the directive requires modification.
The report, which was born of lengthy consultation and an on-line survey, which received over 10,000 responses, reiterates the fact that free circulation of personal data is essential for the smooth functioning of almost all economic activities at EU level. Just one example of this is the fact that before the directive was adopted, clinical trials for medical research throughout Europe kept running into difficulties, due to the enormous differences in standards for data protection. Even though the directive has contributed massively to removing such problems, the Commission has noted that the fact that its late implementation by several Member States (in particular Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, and France, which has still not brought its national legislation into line with the directive) has lessened its effect. It also stresses the fact that the modalities on enforcing the directive have allowed sizeable disparities to remain between both Member States' legislation and the practical modalities of application. As these differences all have different causes and consequences, it believes they also need a series of made-to-measure solutions. In some cases, it specifies, these differences are the result of the directive being applied wrongly, and can be rectified by modifying the law of the Member State in question. Other differences may be the legitimate consequence of a Member State's correct application, if a certain option within the leeway granted by the directive has been adopted, but they continue to make life more complicated for economic operators who wish to use systems which handle data on a European scale, and make the most out of the internal market in this way. Lastly, the report emphasises the low levels of awareness of and compliance with the legislation, and the lack of resources or rigour in the enforcement of national law.
To address these problems, especially those which arise from differences in national legislation and practises, the Commission is proposing a work programme. This programme, to be completed in 2004, is based on dialogue between the Commission and Member States and on co-operation between national authorities responsible for data protection (particularly within the working group set up under article 29 of the directive). It focuses mainly on improving enforcement in the Member States, and on more coherent application and interpretation of the directive. Making compliance less complicated will help to improve compliance standards, the Commission stresses. It will look at the results of the work programme in 2005, and decide whether it is necessary to make proposals for amendments to the directive.