Press Release: New EU Regulation an Important Step Towards More Transparent Political Advertising

(BRUSSELS) — The agreement on the final text for the Regulation on the Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising should create a more transparent political advertising environment ahead of the June 2024 European Elections, according to the Centre for Democracy & Technology Europe.

After several months of negotiation, CDT Europe is gratified that EU lawmakers have landed on an agreement on legislation to address issues that have the potential to undermine democracy — such as microtargeting and lack of accountability.

Asha Allen, Centre for Democracy & Technology Programme Director, Online Expression & Civic Space, said:

“This is a positive step in creating a more transparent political advertising environment, especially given the negative impacts that issues such as microtargeting and lack of accountability have on our democracies. Negotiators seem to have made headway in addressing critical privacy, data protection and free expression concerns that civil society consistently raised throughout the legislative process, however we are yet to see the final text.

Serious questions remain as to how well enforcement of the Regulation will work, and more importantly how well the mechanisms to preserve fundamental rights will be safeguarded. How the law works in practice and is enforced will be vital especially given the unique European context, in which the largest trans-national democratic election in the world occurs every five years.”