Simplification for Whom? Unpacking the Consumer Impact of the Digital Omnibus.

  • Panel
  • Maritime
  • Thursday 21.05 — 08:45 - 10:00

Organising Institution

BEUC

International

BEUC is the umbrella group for 42 independent consumer organisations from 31 countries. Our main role is to represent them to the EU institutions and defend the interests of European consumers. Our acronym originates from our French name, ‘Bureau Européen des Unions de Consommateurs’. Our daily work involves making sure the EU takes policy decisions that improve the lives of consumers. This covers a range of topics including competition, consumer rights, digital rights, energy, redress and enforcement, financial services, food, health, safety, sustainability and trade policy.
  • Business 3
  • Policy 3
In November 2025 the Commission proposed the Digital Omnibus, aimed at simplifying both the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the AI Act to support the competitiveness agenda. However far from merely simplifying the legal framework, the proposed changes may deregulate critical areas, risk creating legal uncertainties for consumers and businesses alike, and raise serious questions about the safety and security of European consumers’ data in the age of AI. This panel will explore the motivations behind these proposals and question whether they are truly necessary or proportionate. It will assess their potential impact on consumer rights, legal certainty, and the effective enforcement of EU data protection rules, with a particular focus on the risks they may pose to the privacy, security, and trust of European consumers in an AI-driven digital economy.

Questions to be answered

  1. Do the ongoing discussions on the Digital Omnibus identify genuine shortcomings in the GDPR and AI Act? Is there justification for this intervention?
  2. What are the potential risks for European consumers stemming from the changes being negotiated?
  3. Do the proposed revisions offer any tangible benefits for consumers and European start-ups, and how could these be delivered without weakening fundamental rights?
  4. How could this regulatory framework evolve and what do you hope any future changes will achieve? Could the revision process have been handled differently?

Moderator

Cláudio Teixeira

BEUC - Belgium

Cláudio Teixeira is Head of Digital Policy of BEUC, the European Consumer Organisation. BEUC is the Consumer Voice in Europe representing 42 national organisations in 31 countries. Since 2021, Cláudio has led BEUC’s work on Digital Services, Artificial Intelligence, Telecommunications and Data Protection. Prior to joining BEUC, he served as Junior Legal Attaché at the Permanent Representation of Portugal to the EU during the 2021 Portuguese Council Presidency, contributing to legislative negotiations such as the Digital Markets Act and the Public Country-by-Country Reporting Directive. Holds a Bachelor and Master of Laws in EU Law from the University of Coimbra, and an LL.M. in European Law from the College of Europe in Bruges.

Speaker

Finn Myrstad

Norwegian Consumer Council - Norway

Finn Lützow-Holm Myrstad is the Director of Digital Policy at the Norwegian Consumer Council (NCC), focusing on national and international issues related to privacy, cyber security, artificial intelligence, deceptive design, telecommunication and more. From 2020-22 he was a member of the government appointed expert panel, the Norwegian Privacy Commission. He develops and promotes international standards as EU Chair of the Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue (www.tacd.org/about), which gathers 75 organisations from both sides of the Atlantic. Finn holds an MSc in Politics and Government of the European Union from the London School of Economics (LSE) and an Executive MBA from Hult International Business School.

Speaker

Andreea Șerban

Future of Privacy Forum (FPF) - International

Andreea Serban is Policy Counsel at Future of Privacy Forum, where she supports the Global Privacy team, with a particular focus on the EU AI Act, its interaction with the GDPR, and emerging AI and data protection frameworks around the globe. She has contributed to FPF publications on the EU AI Act, including detailed analyses of prohibited practices such as biometric categorization and social scoring, as well as reports and policy briefs on the AI Act-GDPR interplay, conformity assessment, and the evolution of the EU data protection framework.

Speaker

Romain Robert

EDPS - Europe

Romain is acting Head of Digital Regulation in the Policy and Consultation Unit of the EDPS. He began his career as a Belgian qualified lawyer specializing in ICT law. He then worked successively for the Belgian Data Protection Authority, the European Data Protection Supervisor, and the European Data Protection Board. He was also a program director at noyb and a member of the litigation chamber of the Belgian Data Protection Authority from 2019 to 2025.