More resources needed for data enforcement

Government plans to transform the personal and organisation culture of data sharing could be hampered by ineffective resourcing, policing and enforcement, despite recommendations made in the recent Data Sharing Review, say lawyers.

The review by the information commissioner Richard Thomas and director of the Wellcome Trust Dr Mark Walport, found that organisations lack transparency and accountability and that confusion surrounds the Data Protection Act and its interaction with other strands of law. To counteract this, it recommends that the legal framework be simplified and that the role of the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) be strengthened with more robust powers.

Tom Morrison, associate in the commercial group at Rollits, says in order for data protection to be properly enforced, it is imperative that the ICO be properly resourced.

“Given that the ICO has recently been granted the power to issue monetary penalty notices, there does seem to be an appetite for keeping data protection near the top of the agenda. The fact remains that any increase in powers will have a diminished impact if the resources at the commissioner’s disposal are not also improved,” he says.