Europarlamentaarikko Aura Sallan puheenvuoro Strasbourgin täysistunnossa 17.9.2024.
Let me start by addressing that enforcement of the DSA has to be guided by evidence and not by hurt political feelings.
As far as we see, a lot of the ongoing work by the enforcement of the DSA is progressing well and shows a serious commitment to protecting and empowering users online by requiring platforms to assess, mitigate and act against their systemic risks and to provide the right content moderation tools to do so as well as clear information to users of possible misbehaviors.
The way to do this is by having careful investigations, clear communication and then subsequent course correction by platforms. Many of the investigations and the actions of the Commission so far suggest that the DSA can work very well.
But that is only the case when things are done correctly. Some of the actions and statements made by the former Commissioner responsible for the regulation over the summer seriously undermined the EU’s credibility as an enforcer, and it is not the first time that statements like this have been made. The DSA is not a tool for preventing something that might be said. Nothing should endanger freedom of speech.
Politicising the enforcement of the DSA is an incredibly dangerous thing to do. The DSA is designed to uphold the rights of millions of people across Europe by addressing systemic risks. It is not a tool for censorship and abusing it in this manner will defeat the purpose of the law.
Instead, the Commission needs to keep working to fine-tune enforcement, so it works as uniformly and efficiently as possible in all member states. This has to be evidence based and process focused. In this house we are closely following the impact of the law and if we need to review some of its elements in the future.