Data protection
Standard Notes
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 07.01.2013 | Data Protection: Access to personal information |
| The Data Protection Act 1998 regulates the use of personal information held on computer and, in some cases, in manual form by both the public and the private sector throughout the United Kingdom. The Act gives individuals the right of access to personal data which is being held on them. There are various other rights under the Act. The Act is enforced by the Information Commissioner (formerly the Data Protection Registrar). | |
| 01.11.2012 | Data Protection: Constituency Casework |
| Following the implementation of the Data Protection Act 1998 a number of MPs reported difficulties in carrying out their constituency duties. This note explains the difficulties that arose and describes the functions of the Statutory Instrument designed to resolve these difficulties. | |
| 13.06.2012 | Retention of fingerprints and DNA data |
| This note considers the circumstances in which the police may retain fingerprint and DNA data from individuals arrested for a recordable offence. Under current law such data can be retained indefinitely. However, the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 will introduce a more limited retention regime. | |
| 18.05.2012 | Internet surveillance |
| This note looks at the history of the two programmes, cites the justifications given by successive governments for what critics have dubbed a 'snooper's charter' and details some of the objections that have been raised against surveillance of this sort. | |
| 17.05.2012 | Interception of communications |
| This Note looks at past and present laws regarding the interception of communications and the role of the Interception of Communications Commissioner in overseeing the present regime. |
Research Papers
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 28.06.2011 | Protection of Freedoms Bill: Committee Stage Report Bill 189 of 2010-11 |
| This is a report on the House of Commons Committee Stage of the Protection of Freedoms Bill. It complements Research Paper 11/20 prepared for the Commons Second Reading. | |
| 23.02.2011 | Protection of Freedoms Bill [Bill 146 of 2010-11] |
| This briefing on the Protection of Freedoms Bill was prepared for the House of Commons Second Reading debate. The Bill forms part of the Coalition Government's programme to 'implement a full programme of measures to reverse the substantial erosion of civil liberties and roll back state intrusion', and follows the passing of the Identity Documents Act 2010, which abolished identity cards. The Bill introduces a wide range of measures including the a new framework for police retention of fingerprints and DNA data, a requirement for schools to get parents' consent before processing children's biometric information, a new regime for police stops and searches under the Terrorism Act 2000 and the reduction of the maximum pre-charge detention period under that Act from 28 to 14 days. It also restricts the scope of the 'vetting and barring' scheme for protecting vulnerable groups and makes changes to the system of criminal records checks. | |
| 19.03.2009 | Coroners and Justice Bill: Committee stage report |
| The Coroners and Justice Bill deals with a wide range of matters including: coroners; death certification; murder, infanticide and suicide; prohibited images of children; hatred against persons on grounds of sexual orientation; criminal evidence, investigations and procedure; sentencing; legal aid; criminal memoirs and data protection. | |
| 22.01.2008 | Coroners and Justice Bill: crime and data protection |
| This paper is one of two which examine the main proposals of the Coroners and Justice Bill 2008-09. It deals with the provisions relating to criminal justice and data protection set out in Parts 2-8 of the Bill. See also HC Research Paper 09/07. | |
| 09.08.2007 | The Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill Bill 130 of 2006-07 |
Select Committee Reports
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 21.12.2010 | A surveillance society?. |
| Government response. Information Commissioner; Home Affairs Select Committee report [Commons] | |
| 31.03.2010 | Leaks and Whistleblowing in Whitehall. |
| Government response. Cabinet Office; Public Administration Select Committee report [Commons] | |
| 16.07.2009 | Leaks and whistleblowing in Whitehall. |
| Public Administration Select Committee report [Commons] |
Early Day Motions
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 14.07.2011 | OFFSHORING AND DATA SECURITY |
| That this House is concerned by Hewlett Packard's (HP) application to offshore up to 200 jobs, from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Lytham and Sheffield, working on the Adams 2 contract with the ... | |
| 11.07.2011 | UK BORDER AGENCY AND THE DATA PROTECTION ACT 1998 |
| That this House notes that the Order that amended the Data Protection Act 1998 which came into force on 17 December 2002 removed the Act's restrictions on the disclosures of sensitive ... | |
| 17.11.2010 | STUART SYVRET |
| That this House is shocked at the decision of the Jersey Courts to imprison erstwhile Senator Stuart Syvret for 10 weeks following his being found guilty of data protection offences; ... | |
| 07.07.2010 | AVAILABILITY OF GOVERNMENT DATA |
| That this House believes that Government data should be published in a machine readable open standards format and that data should be released using a Creative Commons interoperable ... | |
| 22.06.2009 | PROTECTION OF JOURNALISTS' SOURCES |
| That this House regrets that many police forces fail to recognise the importance of a journalist's right to protect his or her sources; believes that the protection of confidential ... |
Lords Library Notes
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 03.11.2011 | Protection of Freedoms Bill (HL Bill 99 of 2010-12) |
| This Library Note provides background information in advance of the Protection of Freedoms Bill's second reading in the House of Lords. | |
| 14.10.2010 | Identity Documents Bill (HL Bill 19 of 2010-11). LLN 2010/024 |
| Identity Documents Bill. House of Lords Library Note 2010/024 |
POST Papers
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 15.03.2012 | Consumer Genetic Testing |
| This POSTnote explores the scientific, regulatory, and ethical issues related to genetic tests sold to consumers. | |
| 25.01.2012 | Open Access to Scientific Information |
| The internet has transformed the nature of scientific research, opening up new ways to collect, use and disseminate scientific information. This has led to increased demand for access to such information. Open Access (OA) to scientific journal publications means making them freely available online, rather than charging readers to view them. OA to research data means making research data more widely available for re-use by others to support research, innovation and wider public use. | |
| 01.07.2007 | Grids and e-Science, July 2007 |
| Grids and e-Science, July 2007. POSTnote 07/286. | |
| 01.10.2006 | Data encryption,October 2006 |
| Data encryption, October 2006. POSTnote 06/270. |
