The European Commission 2022 work programme, adopted on 19 October 2021, contains 42 new policy and legislative initiatives, 26 initiatives to simplify existing legislation, 76 pending priority proposals where the Commission insists on the co-legislators to move forward and 6 proposals for withdrawal.
The document focuses on the digital and green transitions while tackling the challenges posed by the pandemic in a sustainable manner. It also includes a “one-in, one-out” approach to EU law-making, with the purpose of “mak[ing] sure that EU legislation delivers concrete benefits while minimising avoidable administrative burden on EU citizens and businesses, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises”.
In an accelerated digitalisation transformation catalysed by the pandemic, the Commission is determined to “to lead the way in the global race for trustworthy, secure and human-centric technology”.
Tentative calendar, subject to changes:
To be presented in the first quarter of 2022:
To be presented in the second quarter of 2022:
To be presented in the third quarter of 2022:
To be presented in the fourth quarter of 2022:
The Data Act, which had been expected to be presented in December 2021, has been delayed to the first quarter of 2022.
Besides these proposals, there are other initiatives encompassed in different policy objectives that will have an impact on the digital and technological sectors, such as the European Media Freedom Act and the Circular Economy - right to repair initiative. Both of these legislative proposals are due to be presented in the third quarter of 2022.
Currently, several legislative initiatives within the digital and technological domain are being negotiated by the co-legislators: the Council of the EU, and the European Parliament. Although in some cases discussions on the texts are taking longer than initially expected, the following legislative initiatives have already started, or are about to start inter-institutional “trilogue” negotiations:
Negotiations about the Regulation on Privacy and Electronic Communications (ePrivacy Regulation) had been stalled for several years but trilogue meetings finally began in May 2021. However, the file is still progressing at a slow pace.
The Parliament and the Council have recently achieved an agreement on the following proposals:
Neither the Parliament nor the Council has yet reached an internal position about the following pending priority proposals:
In 2022, the Commission is planning to review the following digital initiatives:
Regarding the implementation and enforcement of EU law, as stated in the work plan, the Commission “will continue to work with and support Member States to ensure the swift and full implementation of new and existing EU rules and will not hesitate to uphold EU law through infringement proceedings where needed”.
The five Annexes to the 2022 Commission work programme are available here.
On 9 December, Emmanuel Macron announced the main priorities of the French presidency of the Council of the EU. Concerning the digital domain, the priority of the French Presidency will be “the economic regulation and accountability of platforms, especially with regard to hate speech, with legislation on digital services and markets (DSA and DMA)”. The political will to take these initiatives forward is extremely strong; the French Presidency has announced its goal of reach a final agreement on the DSA and DMA by June 2022.
President Macron stated: “The French presidency must be a moment of truth for the regulation and accountability of digital platforms, the carbon pricing at European borders on imported products, minimum wages, and our relationship with Africa.”
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