Today in Brussels, during a meeting of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO), a presentation was given on the Polish Presidency’s agenda in the digital sphere. The discussion, which included Minister of Economic Development and Technology Krzysztof Paszyk, Dariusz Standerski, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Digital Affairs, and Małgorzata Krok, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Finance, PiS MEPs Piotr Müller and Kosma Złotowski took the floor.
Piotr Müller asked Minister Standerski about issues related to deregulation in the field of new technologies. “This is, of course, extremely important, because in the competition between the United States and China in the artificial intelligence market, as well as in other areas related to new technologies, we face many bureaucratic restrictions,” the MEP emphasized.
The Polish politician referred to a statement by the Secretary of State in which he mentioned that “certain types of bureaucratic or regulatory barriers should be reduced.” In this context, he asked what specific ideas the Polish presidency has in this regard. “It would be good for both Poland and all of Europe if many of these barriers were actually removed,” he noted.
The MEP asked for specific proposals for action on this issue. “Have you already convinced the European Commission on this matter? Has Commissioner Virkkunen committed to extending any legislation in this area?” he inquired.
Dariusz Standerski gave an evasive answer that did not include any specific proposals or ideas from the presidency in this area. He stated in general terms that reducing excessive reporting obligations is “an important goal of the presidency, but also of the European Commission.” “The Polish presidency will conduct a review of regulations in this area. We want to approach this horizontally, because the presidency believes that singling out individual legal acts and taking ad hoc measures is a bad solution,” the politician said. He explained that a horizontal proposal to reduce reporting obligations in the area of digitalization will be presented. In the context of existing digital regulations, he spoke of “the need to create efficient and comprehensive investment strategies.”
Kosma Złotowski noted that two weeks ago, the U.S. announced that, by decision of outgoing President Biden, only 18 allied countries—including 10 EU member states—may continue to purchase integrated circuits for AI development without restrictions.“Meanwhile, the Minister is presenting us with this vision of AI factories in the European Union and claiming that this is the future of our economy, yet here an iron curtain is descending over Europe,” the Polish politician noted.
In this context, he asked Minister Standerski about the reasons behind such an incomprehensible and unfair decision: “How is it possible that countries like Poland and Romania, which today play a special role in U.S. policy under Democratic leadership, are subject to such restrictions?”
The State Secretary at the Ministry of Digital Affairs said that “this decision, made at the end of President Biden’s term, was incomprehensible and was not based on any facts or data.” “What’s worse, this decision was made in the very last days so that there would be no opportunity or possibility to respond to it, because once it was made, President Biden’s administration simply began packing up,” – the politician stated, while expressing hope that the new administration would review “this unreasonable and unfounded decision” to divide the European Union. “However, this decision further underscores the need for a European investment strategy in the field of artificial intelligence,” , Standerski stated, emphasizing “that it is high time for the European Union, too, to fight for its strategic autonomy in the field of artificial intelligence infrastructure.” “That is why we are so eager for the AI Apply strategy and joint management, because today, with 27 small budgets, we will not achieve the economies of scale that an investment at the European Union level can provide,” he said.
