Data protection versus archival memory : the evolution of the draft European General Data Protection Regulation

Abstract

The current European Data Protection Directive is widely viewed as limited in its ability to respond to privacy threats posed by new technologies and media. In response, a draft European General Data Protection Regulation has been proposed, which currently exists in two draft versions – that written in 2012 by Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding, and the 2013 amendments by Member of the European Parliament (MEP) and rapporteur Jan Philipp Albrecht. Further, a Compromise Text from the Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union (CEU) has recently appeared and another Compromise Text is reportedly being prepared by the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs. At the time of writing, little analysis has been made of the draft Regulation’s implications for archives. This article undertakes a close reading of the currently available drafts in order to determine what level of accommodation is envisaged for archival practice, and compares these provisions with the exception made for freedom of expression