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In 2018, the implementation of the GDPR signalled a seismic shift in how businesses target, collect and store personal data. As individuals entrust businesses with their personal data more than ever before, the GDPR has ensured that the right to privacy for individuals is protected through its regulation.
Not since the result of Brexit, and the GDPR ceasing to protect the rights and freedoms of UK Citizens (since 1st Jan 2021), has there been significant changes to the GDPR. However, John Edwards, the UK's newly appointed Information Commissioner, has wasted no time in setting the scene for wholesale reform of the UK's post-Brexit approach to data protection, by launching the Data: A New Direction consultation.
In this blog, we discuss responses to the UK Government's Data: A New Direction consultation, and some of the key changes proposed for the UK's new Data Reform Bill. We also look at changes to accountability, when the reforms could take place, and how the proposed reforms could impact businesses.
On 17th June 2022, the UK Government published its response to its consultation, Data: A New Direction. The consultation was initially launched on 10th September 2021. It proposed a variety of wide-ranging reforms to aid the government in its ambitions of turning the UK into the most appealing global data marketplace.
The proposals in the response are arranged into 30 headings across 5 chapters, titled:
The government's proposals are aimed at streamlining data protection and reducing the burden on businesses while still trying to protect individual's rights and freedoms. Some of the most pertinent changes that have been proposed include, introducing reforms to accountability and introducing privacy management programmes, removing Data Protection Officers (DPOs), and axing mandatory Data Protection Impacts Assessments (DPIAs) and Records of Processing Activities (ROPAs).
The principle of accountability defines that organisations are responsible for complying with the UK GDPR and must be able to demonstrate their compliance. However, under the newly proposed reforms, the government plans to proceed with the requirement for organisations to implement risk-based 'privacy management programmes' (PMPs). This will allow organisations to integrate current accountability mechanisms as elements of a holistic approach to accountability. This means organisations that are currently compliant with the UK GDPR wouldn't need to significantly change their approach to be compliant with the new requirements.
Respondents that opposed this proposal expressed concerns that the introduction of privacy management programmes would cause confusion about how to comply. The counter argument is that privacy management programmes will reduce the administrative burden on businesses and the 'box-ticking' approach to compliance.
The principle of accountability is key for privacy management programmes. The responsible use of personal data will continue to be at the heart of the GDPR accountability framework under the new regime. The government believes that privacy management programmes will place greater emphasis on the key principles at the core of accountability, such as organisational responsibility, risk management, transparency, and training and awareness of staff. It is hoped that continuous monitoring and evaluation will lead to an improvement in data protection management within organisations. How or if this will force UK businesses to change their approach to GDPR data protection, or whether these programmes will affect compliance frameworks that businesses already have in place, will depend solely on how any new legislation reads.
In response to the Data: A New Direction consultation, the government wants to create a more agile approach to GDPR compliance, maintaining high governance standards while reducing the burden on businesses and their resources. Here, we highlight additional key proposals that have been suggested for the Data Reform Bill, that may impact businesses:
HM Government's proposals for data protection reform touch on many more areas than are mentioned here, including:
Rest assured that the EU will be keeping a close eye on the proposed PMP reforms and, no doubt, expressing their concerns where necessary.
One major factor which needs to be considered in these proposals are the UK's Adequacy Decision, allowing the free flow of personal data between the UK and the European Economic Union (EEA). This decision is crucial for UK businesses to operate seamlessly on a European and a Global scale, without the need for individual agreements with every connected EU-based entity. To maintain the Adequacy Decision, the UK must ensure that the standards and protection applied to GDPR data transfers and EU Citizens' data processing in the UK are not lowered. We await a reaction from Europe with bated breath.
The view that great changes and cuts to the GDPR are afoot are currently wide of the mark, as no time has been allocated for the introduction of the Data Reform Bill. Assuming its introduction in early 2023 and, with readings and committee stages required in both the House of Commons and Lords, it is possible that we will not see any new UK data protection laws before mid-2024, if at all.
Finally, the response to the consultation raises one very interesting question: is the government listening? There is more than one instance of changes being proposed where many respondents to the consultation have disagreed with the government's plans. The drawbacks to the proposed changes are that they suggest existing GDPR processes are redundant. Furthermore, business begin to fall under greater pressure to comply to any new processes that are introduced. Some may argue that this shows that the Department for Digital Culture Media and Sport - who are ultimately responsible for the changes, are out of touch with the realities of how GDPR works on the ground.
As a seasoned data protection consutant, Neil writes about all things GDPR and privacy.
Our GDPR consultants are certified and experienced data protection experts. Find out more about how we support organisations across a range of industry sectors, successfully guiding them through the complex responsibilities of GDPR and data protection.
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