(9) Andorra has ratified the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data of 28 January 1981, and the Additional Protocol to the Convention for the Protection of Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data regarding supervisory authorities and transborder data flows of 8 November 2001 as well as the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 4 November 1950, in Andorra in force since 22 January 1996, and the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of 16 December 1966, in Andorra in force since 19 July 2006.
(11) Andorran data protection authorities have provided explanations and assurances as to how the Andorran law is to be interpreted, and has given assurances that the Andorran data protection legislation is implemented in accordance with such interpretation. This Decision takes account of those explanations and assurances, and is therefore conditional upon them.
(13) In the interest of transparency and in order to safeguard the ability of the competent authorities in the Member States to ensure the protection of individuals as regards the processing of their personal data, it is necessary to specify the exceptional circumstances in which the suspension of specific data flows may be justified, notwithstanding the finding of adequate protection.
(14) The Working Party on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data established under Article 29 of Directive 95/46/EC has delivered a favourable opinion on the level of adequacy as regards protection of personal data, which has been taken into account in the preparation of this Decision (3). In its favourable opinion, the Working Party has encouraged the Andorran authorities in the ongoing process of adopting further provisions which will extend the application of Andorran legislation to automated individual decisions, as this is currently not expressly recognised by the Andorran Qualified Law on the protection of personal data.
1. Without prejudice to their powers to take action to ensure compliance with national provisions adopted pursuant to provisions other than Article 25 of Directive 95/46/EC, the competent authorities in Member States may exercise their existing powers to suspend data flows to a recipient in Andorra in order to protect individuals with regard to the processing of their personal data in the following cases:
(b) where there is a substantial likelihood that the standards of protection are being infringed, there are reasonable grounds for believing that the competent Andorran authority is not taking or will not take adequate and timely steps to settle the case at issue, the continuing transfer would create an imminent risk of grave harm to data subjects and the competent authorities in the Member State have made reasonable efforts in the circumstances to provide the party responsible for processing established in Andorra with notice and an opportunity to respond.