As a follow-up to the meeting with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and three Cambridge Analytica hearings, the Civil Liberties Committee (LIBE) propose ways to better protect EU citizens’ privacy, in the European Parliament in Brussels. MEPs may call on national and European data protection authorities to investigate Facebook and for online platforms to be held accountable for political advertising and campaigns. The results are 41 votes in favour, 10 against and 1 abstention. Statement by Claude MORAES (S&D, UK), rapporteur

Brussels

statement

vote

Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

MORAES, Claude (S&D, UK)

protection of personal data (T)

Use of Facebook users' data by Cambridge Analytica and the impact on data protection: extracts from the vote and statement by Claude MORAES (S&D, UK)

Atmosphere shot before the voting session in LIBE starts

Claude MORAES (S&amp;D, UK) LIBE Chair and Rapporteur, opens the vote on the motion for resolution on the use of Facebook users data by Cambridge Analytica and the impact on data protection.

Atmosphere shots during the voting session (6 shots)

Final vote, digital screen with results, resolution is adopted by 41 votes in favour, 10 against and 1 abstention.

SOUNDBITE (English), Claude MORAES (S&amp;D, UK), Rapporteur, There are real difficulties with Facebook in relation to external issues like elections. Facebook is a hugely useful tool at communication for so many things. But, we have dramatically seen that in relation to our own democracies in the European Union and the upcoming European Parliament elections, there are real questions to be asked. So, this resolution is detailed. It asks for an audit of Facebook. We talk about all the tools at our disposal but we have done it with Facebook. We have done it with the industry and asked them to work with us to solve these problems. And it is right that the European Union, The European Parliament should do it. Why? Because we are a crossnational body, we have the economies of scale to do it, we have the mandate to do it and we have more Facebook users in the European Union than the whole of the United States.

SOUNDBITE (English), Claude MORAES (S&amp;D, UK), Rapporteur, What we're saying to Facebook is, look you're an incredibly useful communication tool that is unprecedented. But we have huge concerns on the way that is impacting our democracy and we need to resolve that in the European Union and that's what this resolution says. We hope we can take this forward in the spirit of partnership, but we only feel we have the tools to do it.