(9) The objectives and principles of Directive 95/46/EC remain sound, but it has not prevented fragmentation in the implementation of data protection across the Union, legal uncertainty or a widespread public perception that there are significant risks to the protection of natural persons, in particular with regard to online activity.
Differences in the level of protection of the rights and freedoms of natural persons, in particular the right to the protection of personal_data, with regard to the processing of personal_data in the Member States may prevent the free flow of personal_data throughout the Union.
Those differences may therefore constitute an obstacle to the pursuit of economic activities at the level of the Union, distort competition and impede authorities in the discharge of their responsibilities under Union law.
Such a difference in levels of protection is due to the existence of differences in the implementation and application of Directive 95/46/EC.
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(10) In order to ensure a consistent and high level of protection of natural persons and to remove the obstacles to flows of personal_data within the Union, the level of protection of the rights and freedoms of natural persons with regard to the processing of such data should be equivalent in all Member States.
Consistent and homogenous application of the rules for the protection of the fundamental rights and freedoms of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal_data should be ensured throughout the Union.
Regarding the processing of personal_data for compliance with a legal obligation, for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller, Member States should be allowed to maintain or introduce national provisions to further specify the application of the rules of this Regulation.
In conjunction with the general and horizontal law on data protection implementing Directive 95/46/EC, Member States have several sector-specific laws in areas that need more specific provisions.
This Regulation also provides a margin of manoeuvre for Member States to specify its rules, including for the processing of special categories of personal_data (‘sensitive data’).
To that extent, this Regulation does not exclude Member State law that sets out the circumstances for specific processing situations, including determining more precisely the conditions under which the processing of personal_data is lawful.
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(11) Effective protection of personal_data throughout the Union requires the strengthening and setting out in detail of the rights of data subjects and the obligations of those who process and determine the processing of personal_data, as well as equivalent powers for monitoring and ensuring compliance with the rules for the protection of personal_data and equivalent sanctions for infringements in the Member States.
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(13) In order to ensure a consistent level of protection for natural persons throughout the Union and to prevent divergences hampering the free movement of personal_data within the internal market, a Regulation is necessary to provide legal certainty and transparency for economic operators, including micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, and to provide natural persons in all Member States with the same level of legally enforceable rights and obligations and responsibilities for controllers and processors, to ensure consistent monitoring of the processing of personal_data, and equivalent sanctions in all Member States as well as effective cooperation between the supervisory authorities of different Member States.
The proper functioning of the internal market requires that the free movement of personal_data within the Union is not restricted or prohibited for reasons connected with the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal_data.
To take account of the specific situation of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, this Regulation includes a derogation for organisations with fewer than 250 employees with regard to record-keeping.
In addition, the Union institutions and bodies, and Member States and their supervisory authorities, are encouraged to take account of the specific needs of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in the application of this Regulation.
The notion of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises should draw from Article 2 of the Annex to Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC (5).
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(103) The Commission may decide with effect for the entire Union that a third country, a territory or specified sector within a third country, or an international_organisation, offers an adequate level of data protection, thus providing legal certainty and uniformity throughout the Union as regards the third country or international_organisation which is considered to provide such level of protection.
In such cases, transfers of personal_data to that third country or international_organisation may take place without the need to obtain any further authorisation.
The Commission may also decide, having given notice and a full statement setting out the reasons to the third country or international_organisation, to revoke such a decision.
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(120) Each supervisory_authority should be provided with the financial and human resources, premises and infrastructure necessary for the effective performance of their tasks, including those related to mutual assistance and cooperation with other supervisory authorities throughout the Union.
Each supervisory_authority should have a separate, public annual budget, which may be part of the overall state or national budget.
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(123) The supervisory authorities should monitor the application of the provisions pursuant to this Regulation and contribute to its consistent application throughout the Union, in order to protect natural persons in relation to the processing of their personal_data and to facilitate the free flow of personal_data within the internal market.
For that purpose, the supervisory authorities should cooperate with each other and with the Commission, without the need for any agreement between Member States on the provision of mutual assistance or on such cooperation.
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(129) In order to ensure consistent monitoring and enforcement of this Regulation throughout the Union, the supervisory authorities should have in each Member State the same tasks and effective powers, including powers of investigation, corrective powers and sanctions, and authorisation and advisory powers, in particular in cases of complaints from natural persons, and without prejudice to the powers of prosecutorial authorities under Member State law, to bring infringements of this Regulation to the attention of the judicial authorities and engage in legal proceedings.
Such powers should also include the power to impose a temporary or definitive limitation, including a ban, on processing.
Member States may specify other tasks related to the protection of personal_data under this Regulation.
The powers of supervisory authorities should be exercised in accordance with appropriate procedural safeguards set out in Union and Member State law, impartially, fairly and within a reasonable time.
In particular each measure should be appropriate, necessary and proportionate in view of ensuring compliance with this Regulation, taking into account the circumstances of each individual case, respect the right of every person to be heard before any individual measure which would affect him or her adversely is taken and avoid superfluous costs and excessive inconveniences for the persons concerned.
Investigatory powers as regards access to premises should be exercised in accordance with specific requirements in Member State procedural law, such as the requirement to obtain a prior judicial authorisation.
Each legally binding measure of the supervisory_authority should be in writing, be clear and unambiguous, indicate the supervisory_authority which has issued the measure, the date of issue of the measure, bear the signature of the head, or a member of the supervisory_authority authorised by him or her, give the reasons for the measure, and refer to the right of an effective remedy.
This should not preclude additional requirements pursuant to Member State procedural law.
The adoption of a legally binding decision implies that it may give rise to judicial review in the Member State of the supervisory_authority that adopted the decision.
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(135) In order to ensure the consistent application of this Regulation throughout the Union, a consistency mechanism for cooperation between the supervisory authorities should be established.
That mechanism should in particular apply where a supervisory_authority intends to adopt a measure intended to produce legal effects as regards processing operations which substantially affect a significant number of data subjects in several Member States.
It should also apply where any supervisory_authority concerned or the Commission requests that such matter should be handled in the consistency mechanism.
That mechanism should be without prejudice to any measures that the Commission may take in the exercise of its powers under the Treaties.
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(139) In order to promote the consistent application of this Regulation, the Board should be set up as an independent body of the Union.
To fulfil its objectives, the Board should have legal personality.
The Board should be represented by its Chair.
It should replace the Working Party on the Protection of Individuals with Regard to the Processing of Personal Data established by Directive 95/46/EC.
It should consist of the head of a supervisory_authority of each Member State and the European Data Protection Supervisor or their respective representatives.
The Commission should participate in the Board's activities without voting rights and the European Data Protection Supervisor should have specific voting rights.
The Board should contribute to the consistent application of this Regulation throughout the Union, including by advising the Commission, in particular on the level of protection in third countries or international_organisations, and promoting cooperation of the supervisory authorities throughout the Union.
The Board should act independently when performing its tasks.
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(170) Since the objective of this Regulation, namely to ensure an equivalent level of protection of natural persons and the free flow of personal_data throughout the Union, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States and can rather, by reason of the scale or effects of the action, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU).
In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve that objective.
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