A group of data protection training providers and experts working with the Campaign for Records have written an article outlining their concerns over the enforcement and the weakening of information rights contained within the Data Protection and Digital Information (DPDI) Bill.
The group, which includes Freevacy, are concerned about the implications of inconsistent enforcement due to a stated desire to use discretion to reduce monetary penalty amounts or apply a different regulatory action. The article highlights warnings from practitioners relayed in training courses: "In the absence of a genuine threat of regulatory enforcement, their advice, warnings and requests to colleagues and their executive leadership have started being ignored. Whether by design or an unintended consequence, the message to industry practitioners is that their work is less important than the pursuit of innovation."
The situation is made worse through provisions in the Bill relating to regulatory independence, the weakening of information rights and the lack of provisions covering the development and use of AI technologies.
However, after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called a general election on 4 July, there is a risk the Bill will be rushed through in the "wash-up" before Parliament is dissolved on 30 May.
As Dr Chris Pounder alluded to in a blog post calling for the Bill to be scrapped, "the two main political parties can agree to enact outstanding and uncontroversial pieces of legislation." Unfortunately, Labour is not opposed to the Bill, so it remains possible that it could still be passed.
A separate article by the Open Rights Group also calls on the government to scrap the Bill. ORG Executive Director Jim Killock said: "The British people deserve there to be proper parliamentary scrutiny of laws that could have a huge impact on our lives. The Bill must not be rushed through in the parliamentary wash up."
Of course, not everyone feels the same. An article in City A.M. reports senior technology and media executives are pressing for the DPDI Bill and the Media Bill to be passed. Meanwhile, a blog article by Chris Combemale, CEO of the Data and Marketing Association (DMA), is calling for the government and opposition parties to unite and DPDI Bill.
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