The proposed Directive covers “the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector.” The Council of Ministers is advocating a more hard-line approach to data retention. Experts charged with advising the Council have recommended greater powers for law enforcement agencies to access sensitive data. However, just last week, the Parliament voted to restrict access to information such as internet traffic data.
The issue of unsolicited commercial e-mail, or spam, has also proved to be a sticking point in reaching agreement for a Directive. The Parliament favours leaving decisions on spam to the respective Member States, as at present. The majority of member states wish to see a ban on spam, but the UK, Ireland, Luxembourg and France prefer a more lax approach.
The questions of how to deal with internet cookies and short message services (SMS) have also been addressed. Both bodies agreed that unsolicited SMS should be banned and are attempting to meet a compromise on the issue of cookies.