Simplification (netwars.pelicancrossing.net)

A leaked internal draft of the European Commission’s “Digital Omnibus” — reported by data-protection NGO Noyb — suggests the Commission plans to use an omnibus fast-track procedure to introduce sweeping changes across EU data, privacy, cybersecurity, and AI rules. The omnibus mechanism is meant to update multiple laws simultaneously to “streamline paperwork,” but Noyb and other civil-rights groups argue the Commission is abusing it to push substantive, contentious rollbacks without impact assessments or full scrutiny from other EU institutions. The draft, which the Commission may present on November 19, would still need approval from the European Parliament and a majority of member states, but critics warn it could erode decades of EU data-protection rights and enforcement practice. Technically, the package appears aimed at loosening obligations that currently constrain how companies can use personal data for AI model development — effectively widening exemptions and reducing the regulatory burden on large AI firms while leaving stricter protections mostly for small or legacy operators. That has knock-on effects for GDPR consistency, adequacy decisions (notably the UK’s), and the interplay with the DSA, DMA and the AI Act. Noyb, EDRi and other groups have issued open objections; enforcement concerns remain acute since weakening rules without stronger oversight would shift power toward data-holding platforms and away from individuals’ rights.