Brussels, 06/01/2009 (Agence Europe) - Peter Hustinx has been reappointed as European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS). On 23 December, the European Parliament and the Council agreed on the appointment of Hustinx as EDPS for a second term of office. They also appointed Giovanni Buttarelli as Assistant Supervisor for the same five-year term. Buttarelli will take over from Joaquín Bayo Delgado who decided not to seek a second term of office. The Supervisor and Assistant Supervisor will shortly take up their duties, once the official decision has been published. While there was no difficulty with the reappointment of Hustinx, Buttarelli's appointment was anything but a foregone conclusion, since the Council's preferred candidate for the post was Austrian Waltraut Kotschy (see EUROPE 9789). Hustinx has held the post of EDPS since January 2004. He has contributed to the building of the new supervisory authority and developing its role at Community level. Butarrelli has been a member of the Italian judiciary since 1986 and Secretary General of the Italian Data Protection Authority since 1997. In 2002-2003, he served as President of the Joint Supervisory Authority set up in pursuance of the Schengen Agreement. He has represented Italy in many committees and working groups operating in the field of data protection, within both the European Union and the Council of Europe. (B.C./transl.rt)