By Loreline Merelle
Is a European Passenger Name Record (PNR) system really necessary? For European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) Giovanni Buttarelli, this crucial question has not been addressed yet, despite seven years of controversy and multiple
recommendations
by the EDPS and the Article 29 working group (see below).
The Commission recently wrote a
letter
to demonstrate the PNR's conformity with the Court of Justice
ruling
of April 2014, which struck down Directive 2006/24/EC
(*) Directive 2006/24/EC of the European Parliament…
Towards a European data protection committee
The 'Article 29' working group, named after the article creating it, has remained unknown among the general public since being set up in 1995 with the entry into force of the data protection directive (95/46/EC). It brings together the 28 national data protection authorities (CNIL in France, Datatilsynet in Denmark, BFD in Germany, etc). On the alert from the beginnings of the PNR agreement with the United States in 2004, it still plays an advisory role and cooperates with the European Data Protection Supervisor, created in 2001 for EU bodies. The new draft regulation – still being discussed in the Council – merges the working group and the European supervisor into a single committee, which the latter may direct. But the committee's power remains limited. Everything will depend on the outcome of discussions by the 28, the majority of which support a decentralisation of powers.