Following the European Parliament’s adoption of a General Approach to the long-awaited draft Data Protection Regulation (DPR) last month, negotiations over the regulation’s final form have now commenced. These negotiations between the European Commission, the European Parliament and the EU Council of Ministers (Council) are known as the “Trilogue process.” This represents the final stage of the European negotiations, which means the regulations are on track for being put in place by the end of the year.
The first trilogue meeting took place on June 24, 2015. In a statement from Czech Commissioner Vera Jourová from the European Commission, it was reported that: “Today we send a strong message to tomorrow's European Council meeting on the Digital Single Market: We are on track to adopt the data protection reform in 2015.” The Commissioner provided reassurance that:
“[W]e all agree on a number of critical elements that form the foundation of this reform:
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A single set of rules on data protection, valid across the EU. Not 28;
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Reinforced rights to put people back in control over their data;
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The same rules for companies from the EU and from outside the EU; and
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A strong and effective one-stop shop mechanism to simplify the lives of companies and citizens.
Final adoption of the DPR is expected by the end of 2015, which will then come into force in European member states two years later.
