Henna Virkkunen, the EU Commissioner overseeing technology issues, informed members of the European Parliament’s Committee onLegal Affairs (JURI) on Wednesday that the proposed AI Liability Directive wouldn’t result in a single cohesive set of regulations throughout the EU.
"Through directives, member states interpret and apply the rules differently," Virkkunen stated. "I believe additional regulations would ensure we maintain a unified single market," she further explained, referring to the legally enforceable tool applicable uniformly throughout all member states.
The committee members had ask ed The Commission withdrew the AI Liability Directive because the EU executive mentioned they foresaw "no foreseeable agreement" on the proposal as per their 2025 work program released in February.
These regulations aimed to provide consumers with a standardized way to seek recourse when harmed by artificial intelligence products or services. Although introduced in 2022, little advancement has occurred regarding these proposals.
"We must completely enforce the AI Act prior to introducing additional regulations – over the past few years, the European Commission has suggested numerous digital guidelines, and we should streamline these before putting forward anything new," stated Virkkunen.
Politicians have disagreed about whether these regulations are necessary. Axel Voss from Germany, who oversees matters for the JURI committee within the EPP group, has expressed interest in continuing work on this file. On the other hand, Kosma Złotowski of Poland, representing the ECR group in the IMCO committee, mentioned in his preliminary assessment that they should move forward with their recommendations. published In January, they stated that "adopting an AI Liability Directive at this stage would be premature and unwarranted."
Voss stated during the JURI hearing on Wednesday that simplification is an ongoing trend, but "liability regulations are still essential for establishing a genuine digital single market."
Sergey Lagodinsky (Germany/Greens) expressed his confusion regarding the rationale behind the withdrawal and emphasized that co-legislators should have been involved in consultations. Conversely, Diego Solier (Spain/ECR) and Svenja Hahn (Germany/Renew), who are part of the IMCO committee, supported the Commission’s choice.
Hahn stated that current product liability laws and national tort laws suffice, providing consumers with ample opportunity to submit claims.
In a letter As mentioned earlier this week to Virkkunen, both civil society organizations and consumer groups have urged the Commission to develop new AI liability regulations aimed at addressing “existing legal loopholes.”
The Commission has up to August to reach a final decision regarding this issue.