Democracy was cast aside—the EU forced through "Chat Control"

A majority of the voting members of the European Parliament wanted to stop Chat Control. Yet the proposal passed. An expedited procedure and an unusual voting requirement led to the “no” side losing—despite receiving more votes. Now, sharp criticism is being directed at how the vote was conducted.

On Thursday, the European Parliament voted on an extension of the temporary law commonly known as Chat Control 1. The law allows online platforms to scan private messages for child abuse material. The extension is valid through April 3, 2028.

However, this is seen as a pretext to justify extensive surveillance and an infringement on the digital privacy of ordinary, law-abiding citizens.

Before the vote, a motion was introduced to block the extension. It was supported by 314 members, while 276 voted against it and 17 abstained. However, since the matter was pushed through under an expedited procedure, an absolute majority of the entire Parliament—at least 361 votes—was required to block the bill. Therefore, it was not enough for a majority of those voting to say no.

Here's how the Swedish political parties voted

Among the Swedish political parties, the Sweden Democrats and the Christian Democrats voted to block the extension. The Liberals voted against it. The Social Democrats, the Moderates, and the Left Party did not participate in the vote, while the Center Party abstained.

Critics: ”You keep voting until the result is right”

The German Member of the European Parliament Tomasz Froelich wrote on X Following the decision:

”Scandal: A majority in the European Parliament voted in favor of Chat Control! Mass scanning of private messages. A threat to end-to-end encryption. Total surveillance enshrined in law. Shortly before the summer recess, this was pushed through using an expedited procedure—even though Parliament had previously rejected Chat Control twice. They simply keep voting until the result suits them.”

Several other critics also reacted to the way the vote was conducted. On X credits the account The Sweden Democrats in the European Parliament (which is the Sweden Democrats’ official channel for the party’s activities in the European Parliament) reported that a majority voted to reject the proposal, but that the law was nevertheless passed because the fast-track procedure meant that absent members were, in practice, counted as supporting the law.

Chat Control 2 is still under negotiation

Thursday's decision applies only to the temporary law, Chat Control 1. The permanent Chat Control law, often referred to as Chat Control 2, is still under negotiation and is not covered by Thursday's decision.