20 May 2014

BPIF presses Justice Minister on proposed changes to EU data protection laws

In 2012 the European Parliament voted to significantly overhaul current EU data protection laws. As a result, a new single EU General Data Protection Regulation now looks set to replace the existing patchwork of national laws. The new Regulation will affect almost every business operating within the EU, as well as many outside the EU.

The Regulation will establish one single data protection law and a one-stop shop for data protection regulation across all EU Member States. It will give individuals greater control over their own personal data, through a new right to erasure of their personal data, and will introduce a new right to data portability across international borders. The Regulation will also apply to businesses and other organisations outside the EU that process personal data and wish to offer goods or services to individuals in the EU or monitor their behaviour.

On 12 March this year, the European Parliament Committee of Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE Committee) adopted its First Reading position on the draft European General Data Protection Regulation. Following this vote, the European Parliament may enter into negotiations with the Council after the European elections this May. Although the UK and Sweden are opposed to this swift timetable, the rest of the Member States appear to be in favour of reaching agreement this year.

European printing employers' confederation Intergraf has been keeping a close eye on these developments and is lobbying hard to ensure that the new Regulation does not impact adversely on our industry. Intergraf has expressed concern to the European Commission that its proposals do not guarantee that direct marketing will remain possible in the future and given the pace with which these proposals is now moving forward, it has now asked all its member federations to write to their respective national justice ministries to highlight this concern and to seek the support of their national governments in addressing it.

BPIF CEO Kathy Woodward therefore wrote to UK Justice and Civil Liberties Minister Simon Hughes MP on 1 April to make him aware that the European Commission's proposals do not recognise the legitimate interest of third parties to process data on behalf of publishers or brand owners, as is the case under the current legal EU legal framework. We have stressed that the use of addresses by third parties for the acquisition of new customers is of utmost importance, since many publishers and other companies rely on the use of third party specialised marketing service providers to reach potential new customers. Customer acquisition should therefore not be stopped by excessive requirements on profiling. We also pointed out that around 37% of the UK printing industry's sales turnover is comprised of advertising literature and other marketing materials that are heavily dependent on addressed mail.

We have urged the Minister to raise this issue in the coming EU negotiations on the proposal for a General Data Protection Regulation to ensure that it does not restrict future advertising opportunities to the detriment of both the advertising and printing industries.

In a positive reply to our letter, Mr Hughes confirmed this view ''that the new data protection framework should be based on the adoption of accountability principles, risk-management and a focus on outcomes (rather than processes) and that the legitimate processing of data should not be unduly restricted under the proposed regulation''.