06 Lug Letter of European Privacy Association to the Swedish EU Presidency
Dear Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt,
We call upon you, as incoming President of the European Union to address privacy issues.
The European Privacy Association recognises the importance of data protection in today’s world, with an approach to privacy that constantly evolves to reflect the ever-changing technological innovations and uses.
Data protection is a fundamental right. At EPA, we support the freedom of the Individual to decide whether to reveal their data or not and believe that privacy can be integral to the design and success of products/services for business.
Whilst the global nature of the issues transcends any one authority, the European Union is ideally placed to lead the world in shaping policies, and as such;
We call the Swedish Presidency to
– Introduce a Government Privacy Impact Assessment tool for EU laws
An impact assessment must be carried out on all proposed new laws across the European Union to ensure that they protect the privacy of EU citizens.
– Privacy must be higher on the Agenda
Given the urgent and critical nature of issues surrounding Privacy, the European Commission must elevate the position of Privacy in the agenda
– Assure that Member States are held to the same levels of accountability as the private sector Privacy issues are relevant in both private and public bodies. The EU must ensure that the public sector is held to the same high standards as the private sector in ensuring the security of data and privacy of the individual.
– Support for Cybersecurity policies
With the new and transnational nature of the threats to cyber-security, we urge the EU to encourage national Governments in their efforts of improving national, European and international level coordination in cybersecurity issues. Each Member state should have the scope to develop specific strategy and organisational structures to address cybersecurity needs and work with others where appropriate. Due to
the nature of networks, it is also important to work with the private sector to promote a coordinated approach.
On behalf of the EPA Board, I look forward to cooperating with you, and would be happy to meet with you to discuss these points further
Yours sincerely,
Karin Riis-Jorgensen – Chair
Pat Cox (Vice-Chair), Birgitte Kofod Olsen (Treasurer) Pietro Paganini (Executive Officer), Christopher Kuner, Luca Bolognini, Gus Hosein