Germany softens stance on EU data-protection reform  BRUSSELS
Thu Jul 26, 2012 5:25pm BST  BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Germany is
prepared to cede some of its strict control over access to
public information to meet new EU data protection laws,
diplomats said on Thursday, a concession that should allow the
proposals to come into force in 2013.  Differences between EU
member states over the balance between privacy and transparency
have been a stumbling block to adopting new EU-wide standards,
with states like Germany aiming to maximise privacy and northern
European states such as Finland and Sweden seeking as much
openness as possible.  The European Commission, which proposed
the rules in January, sees harmonising data protection standards
as critical to safeguarding technological innovation in Europe.
It estimates that a slimmed-down and simplified set of rules
could save business up to 2.3 billion euros (1.7 billion pounds)
a year.  As well as more straightforward data rules, the
Commission wants to see the creatio