Commission moves to rewrite Europe’s digital rulebook

Europe has spent the past decade building some of the toughest digital laws in the world. Now, faced with a U.S. artificial intelligence boom and rapid advances in China, the European Commission fears that its own rulebook may be holding it back. 

Last week, the Commission unveiled a Digital Omnibus that reopens major parts of the Union’s digital framework. It’s a clear signal that Brussels wants to compete, not just regulate.

What’s inside the overhaul

The Omnibus would push back the most demanding high-risk obligations under the Artificial Intelligence Act, effectively slowing the rollout of the EU’s flagship AI law as Brussels reassesses its impact.

Systems used in biometric identification, utilities, health, credit scoring and law enforcement would see their compliance deadline pushed from August 2026 to December 2027. The delay is more than administrative. It reflects mounting concern inside the Berlaymont that the AI Act is advancing faster than companies and public authorities can realistically absorb.

The Commission is also seeking a sharper definition of what counts as non-personal data. If adopted, the change could widen access to anonymised European datasets used to train advanced AI systems. Additional revisions would exempt narrow and procedural high-risk tools from the EU’s database and streamline online consent rules, promising fewer and shorter cookie pop-ups for users.

Alongside the rulebook revisions, the European Commission rolled out a new Data Union Strategy, aimed at unlocking higher-quality data across the bloc to fuel European AI development. As part of the strategy, the Commission is advancing a proposal for a European Business Wallet, a harmonised digital identity tool for companies and public bodies that allows them to sign, store and share documents and credentials securely across EU borders.

The wallet is pitched as a cornerstone of a more integrated digital single market, designed to reduce paperwork, streamline cross-border interactions and free up firms to focus on innovation.

The political fight ahead

The proposals will now head to the Council and the Parliament, where political fault lines are already simmering. Unsurprisingly, the mood echoes the turbulence of the Sustainability Omnibus, raising the odds of another left–right clash and the rise of a right-leaning coalition in the negotiations. And if that coalition were to take shape, the von der Leyen majority may discover its cracks are less cosmetic than structural. 

Where the political groups stand 

The centre-right EPP is broadly on board, calling the package essential for European industry and urging swift adoption. But the group appears less united than it was during the Sustainability Omnibus fight. Senior figures such as MEP Axel Voss, who helped draft several of the laws now slated for revision, remain critical, warning that Brussels risks veering into oversimplification.

While Socialists and Democrats back simplification when it benefits citizens and businesses, they draw a hard line against changes that weaken the EU’s digital acquis. Maltese MEP Alex Saliba has described parts of the proposal as “unacceptable deregulation” that could weaken safeguards on data, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence. 

Former AI Act rapporteur Brando Benifei supports measures that ease compliance for smaller firms and strengthen the European AI Office, but he warns that delays and exemptions could hand an edge to non-European tech players.

Renew Europe is broadly supportive of the simplification push but emphasises that cutting red tape must not compromise privacy or fundamental rights. In its official statement, the group raises concerns that the current proposal could weaken central GDPR safeguards, putting sensitive data at risk and opening the door to intrusive or discriminatory practices. 

Within the group, opinions diverge. Svenja Hahn, Renew’s coordinator on the Internal Market Committee, welcomed the package’s potential to streamline legislation and bolster Europe’s digital competitiveness. But her French colleague Fabienne Keller, who coordinates the group in the Civil Liberties Committee, warned that simplification cannot come at the expense of fundamental rights, arguing that several provisions risk eroding core GDPR protections.

This reflects Renew’s familiar divide between its classical-liberal wing and members who take a more guarded approach, particularly those from France.

What’s next in the legislative grind

Lawmakers are expected to divide the Omnibus into two separate files to speed up committee handling. The Internal Market Committee is likely to take the lead on the AI elements, while the Industry and Civil Liberties Committees would steer the second package.

In the Council, many national governments appear ready to embrace measures such as the pause on high-risk AI rules. Civil-society organisations, however, warn that the Digital Omnibus risks stripping away core protections without delivering any real boost to European competitiveness.

Whether the Parliament’s centrist coalition can hold the line is far from clear. Early reactions suggest the EPP, which holds the balance of power, is drifting toward the right-leaning ECR and PfE, both of which have welcomed the proposal.

However, holding such a coalition together over months of negotiations will be no easy task.

The Sustainability Omnibus already pushed the Parliament’s balance to the right and strained the alliance that delivered Ursula von der Leyen two mandates. A second Omnibus in quick succession, once again relying on right-leaning majorities, would stretch that coalition even further. Von der Leyen’s bet on simplification may yet become the most consequential, and politically risky, test of her leadership.