Hr. formand, først vil jeg gerne takke de over 17.000 mennesker, som blev mobiliseret i løbet af få dage, lige så snart det blev bekendtgjort på internettet, at vi i et instrument til harmonisering af det indre marked under første søjle ønskede at medtage en udtrykkelig henvisning til muligheden for en pligt til opbevare alle oplysninger i forbindelse med elektronisk kommunikation, telefoni, internet, sms og mobiltelefoni. 50 organisationer i USA, American Civil Liberty Union og mange andre gik imod denne idé og dette forslag, som for os stadig er det alvorligste og mest omstridte punkt.
Mr President, I would like to start by thanking the over 17 thousand people who, in the space of a very few days, as soon as the news appeared on the Internet that we wanted to include in a first pillar instrument on the harmonisation of the internal market an explicit reference to the possibility of requiring the retention of data, of all data - e-mail, telephone, Internet, SMS and mobile phone communications - have roused themselves: 50 US organisations, the American Civil Liberty Union and many others have risen up in opposition to this idea and this proposal, which is still the most serious, controversial point for us, a point which the PPE-DE/ PSE compromise has attempted to include in our directive in line with the Council recommendations, acting against the European Parliament's position at first reading, acting against the position and the recommendations of the Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs.