The President of the Personal Data Protection Office criticizes the draft data law. “An unclear supervision model will undermine effectiveness”

The draft Act on Fair Access to Data contains an unclear supervision model that will weaken the effectiveness of the regulations – according to a statement from the President of the Personal Data Protection Office, Mirosław Wróblewski. In his opinion, the project should regulate the method of cooperation between the Office of Personal Data Protection and the Office of Electronic Communications, which is responsible for supervision.

The draft act on fair access to data and their use prepared by the Ministry of Digital Affairs was published in November 2025 and is intended to enable full application of the provisions of the EU regulation – data act in Poland (Data Act, DA). According to the DA, member countries are to appoint a data exchange supervisory authority, a data coordinator and an entity for certification of authorities that will resolve disputes related to the regulations.

According to the draft act, all these functions in Poland will be performed by the president of the Office of Electronic Communications (UKE). According to the proposed regulations, it is to cooperate, among others, with: with the Personal Data Protection Office (UODO).

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“Cooperation between authorities cannot be based solely on the possibility of seeking mutual opinions” – pointed out the President of the Personal Data Protection Office and added that he included his objections in the comments to the draft. He stressed that the data act requires effective and binding cooperation, including the exchange of information and coordination of activities.

“The lack of such procedural regulations will weaken the effectiveness of supervision. An unclear supervision model may also impede the effective enforcement of rights by natural persons,” Wróblewski emphasized.

In his opinion, the MC should precisely and clearly define in the draft regulations binding mechanisms of cooperation between offices that will guarantee real and effective protection of personal data.. Wróblewski also calls for a clear division of competences between UKE and the Office of Personal Data Protection.

He also gave the example of draft regulations from Germany and Slovakia, where – similarly to Poland – work on the implementation of DA is underway. In Germany, lawmakers decided that the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedoms will be an independent supervisory authority in terms of the application and enforcement of GDPR provisions. The project also includes the obligation of close cooperation between federal entities in determining the leading role of the Federal Network Agency. The Slovak equivalent of the Personal Data Protection Office, like the German one, will be solely competent to enforce the provisions of the GDPR and possibly impose administrative penalties, Wróblewski said.

The draft act on fair access to data and their use assumes that the President of UKE will supervise the exchange of data between entrepreneurs, consumers and public administration and certify bodies to resolve disputes in this matter. The tasks of the Office, as a supervisory authority, will include, among others: examining complaints arising from violations of the DA, conducting proceedings in matters relating to the application of the act and imposing fines for violations.

According to the project, the President of UKE is to cooperate with national authorities responsible for the implementation of EU or national legal acts, including the Personal Data Protection Office. According to the proposed regulations, the President of UKE will also perform the tasks of data coordinator, which means, among others, that he will: cooperated with the competent authorities of other EU Member States and the European Commission.

The EU Data Act has been directly applicable in all European Union Member States since September 12, 2025. The draft Act on Fair Access to Data and its Use has been in the Ministry of Digital Affairs since November 12 last year, when it was published. The social side had until December 3 to submit comments on the project as part of public consultations. Michał Gramatyka, Deputy Minister of Digitization, is responsible for developing the project. (PAP)

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