In the latest pain for lawmakers, lawmakers on Thursday added an amendment to a controversial piece of legislation that would have exempted end-to-end encrypted services such as WhatsApp and Signal from tracking laws.
In the end, both camps came out disappointed.
German lawmaker Lena Düpont, the far-right group’s domestic affairs spokeswoman, said the group wants a “clear cut” restoration of the law without any amendments. “We are not satisfied with today’s results,” he said.
Irena Joveva, a Slovenian liberal MP who voted against the government in general and was behind one of the successful amendments, said “I am very disappointed that the Council, with the support of one political group, was able to force this vote on us.”
Tech companies, that is keep dancing despite the legal gap, they face more uncertainty and delays, they said. “We expected approval today,” said Ben Brake, managing director of technology lobby group DOT Europe. “Adopting amendments – even if they are well-intentioned – delays the process.”
And children are still not protected, said Nathalie Meurens, spokeswoman for ECLAG, a coalition of groups defending children’s rights. “Today’s vote was about closing a huge legal gap that continues to put children at risk,” he said.
