Call for views on data protection reform

The House of Commons Public Bill Committee has announced a call for written evidence on the Bill, which should be submitted as soon as possible. The committee is scheduled to report on the Bill by 13 June.

The Bill, introduced into the Commons in March, aims to reform the data protection regime and abolish the Information Commissioner’s Office, transferring the commissioner’s functions to an Information Commission.

Amid a wide range of reforms, it would change the definition of ‘personal data’, allow data sharing to support the delivery of public services which benefit businesses and undertakings, and make changes to the regulation and oversight of biometrics, CCTV and the National DNA Database.