The European Parliament's civil liberties (LIBE) and industry (ITRE) committees held a joint meeting on 13 July 2026 to debate the Digital Omnibus, a Commission proposal to simplify EU digital rules covering the Data Act, GDPR, ePrivacy, Data Governance Act, Open Data Directive, and the Platform-to-Business (P2B) regulation. Co-rapporteurs Aura Salla (EPP) and Marina Kaljurand (S&D) presented a draft report that found common ground on several points: a single reporting portal, reversing the proposed repeal of the P2B regulation, simpler data-protection tools, and a risk-based approach to GDPR enforcement. Kaljurand stressed that fundamental rights must not be eroded in the process.
Markéta Gregorová (Greens-EFA) criticised the draft as lacking ambition, warning against changing the definition of personal data. João Oliveira (The Left) argued that simplification comes at consumers' expense. Diana Iovanovici Șoșoacă (NI) called automated data collection an attack on the presumption of innocence. Oliver Schenk (EPP) emphasised data as a strategic resource for AI. Elena Sancho Murillo (S&D) supported deleting a data-access definition that risked watering down the Data Act. Damian Boeselager (Greens-EFA) wanted to preserve the Data Act's balance and restore commercial separation between data intermediation and storage. Michael McNamara (Renew) backed a risk-based approach to trade secrets and a single cyber entry point.
Opinion rapporteurs Alex Agius Saliba (IMCO, S&D) and Brando Benifei (JURI, S&D) opposed deregulatory elements like repealing P2B without an impact assessment. Fabrice Leggeri (PfE) opposed repealing P2B and called for anchoring the personal-data definition and digital sovereignty. Diego Solier (ECR) wanted a harmonised, risk-based AI-and-data framework. Commission deputy director-general Renata Nikolay defended simplification but acknowledged concerns on P2B repeal and the personal-data definition.
Broad cross-group consensus emerged on simplifying the rulebook and opposing the P2B repeal without an impact assessment. No vote was taken; amendments are due by 15 July. Affected stakeholders include businesses (especially SMEs), data subjects, platform operators, and data intermediaries.