Today I learned that on 30 September the EC has initiated infringement procedures against 19 EU Member States because of failing to provide complete information on the transposition in national law of the new Open Data Directive.

Just one day before that announcement I already wrote that transposition was far from complete, but I hadn’t noticed that the day after that turned out to apply to 19 countries or about 70% of Member States.

One of those countries, unsurprisingly, is the Netherlands. Unsurprising because the work on the transposition only started in earnest last February. A year delayed because of shifting priorities due to the pandemic, and much too late to ensure timely compliance, for which the deadline was last July.

My contact on this within the responsible ministry however told me that progress has been made. An internet consultation on the new law should open shortly after New Year, meaning the text of the proposed transposition will be publicly available then. I am eager to read it.