Data Privacy & Security Data Privacy & Security

UK data adequacy decision would justify mass surveillance, EU lawmaker says

By Matthew Newman and Jakub Krupa
  • 15 Feb 2021 10:58
  • 15 Feb 2021 10:58

EU approval of the UK's data protection adequacy would be “ridiculous” as it would justify the country’s mass-surveillance practices, a European Parliament member said today.

Patrick Breyer, a German Green Party member and outspoken privacy advocate, told MLex that the European Commission’s approval — expected within days — would be

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Matthew Newman

Chief Correspondent


Matthew Newman is a chief correspondent for MLex and writes about data protection, privacy, telecoms, cyber security and artificial intelligence. Matthew began his journalism career in 1991 in community newspapers. He worked as a reporter in Riga, Latvia in 1993 and then moved to Chicago where he covered local news. In 1995, he became a personal finance reporter for Dow Jones Newswires, and was then transferred to Brussels in 1999. He specialized in EU regulatory affairs, including trade and telecom issues. He began covering competition for Bloomberg News as an EU court reporter in 2004. In 2010, he was named spokesman for Viviane Reding, the EU’s justice commissioner. In January 2012, he helped launch the commission’s proposal to overall data protection rules.

Jakub Krupa

Senior Correspondent


Jakub joined MLex’s London team in August 2020 to report on topics including data privacy and security, cybersecurity, and telecom regulation, focusing on EU & UK regulatory and legal risk in the telecoms, media and technology (TMT) sectors. He is currently working on MLex's coverage of future mobility, in particular the rise of connected, electric and autonomous vehicles.

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