Peter Hustinx and Giovanni Buttarelli are members of the institution. They took office on 17 January 2009. As members, elected by the European Parliament and the Council, they have a different status to that of the staff of their secretariat.
> Read more about their appointment and previous experiences.
The EDPS' general objective is to ensure that the European institutions and bodies respect the right to privacy when they process personal data and develop new policies. A number of specific duties of the EDPS are laid down in Regulation (EC) No 45/2001. The three main fields of work are:
