Source: European Parliament
Momentum is building around data protection reform, with the European Commission proposing targeted changes to ease compliance for small and mid-cap enterprises, and the United Kingdom (UK) adopting broad reforms at its third attempt. The UK’s reform proposals, aimed at boosting economic growth and innovation, focused on reducing administrative burdens, promoting data reuse for research, and facilitating artificial intelligence development. However, critics warned these reforms unduly weaken fundamental rights and jeopardise the UK’s adequacy status with the European Union (EU). As the United States pressures the EU to adopt a more lenient regulatory stance, and industry voices call for a wider review of the General Data Protection Regulation, the UK’s experience offers cautionary lessons. Any broader reform effort that is not carefully designed and fails to account for the public’s strong data protection expectations will likely face significant opposition from civil society.