The Government is seeking evidence on the new legislative proposals for data protection which were published by the European Commission on 25 January 2012.
The proposals consist of a draft Regulation setting out a general EU framework for data protection and a draft Directive on protecting personal data processed for the purposes of prevention, detection, investigation or prosecution of criminal offences and related judicial activities.
Data controllers, rights groups, information policy experts and other interested parties are invited by the Ministry of Justice to provide information about the likely impact of the Commission’s proposals. It is said that this will assist the Government in its forthcoming negotiations for an effective EU data protection legislative framework.
The Ministry of Justice is at pains to point out that this is not a formal consultation, but an evidence gathering exercise. The closing date is 6 March.
The SCL Data Protection Committee is launching the preparation of a response to this consultation at the Annual SCL Data Protection Update which to be held on 22 February 2012. At this event, which is hosted and presented by Bristows in London, the SCL will seek responses to the questions raised in the consultation. These will be consolidated into a draft response to the Ministry of Justice which will be submitted on behalf of the SCL. Further details about the event can be found here.
The call for evidence and the online questionnaire can be accessed here. After preliminary questions on the respondent, the online questionnaire simply asks ‘How will the proposals affect you, or the bodies you represent? Wherever possible we would like quantifiable costs and benefits and real-life examples of the potential impact of the proposals.’
