Information Commissioner suspended following workplace investigation

The Commissioner will now be temporarily unable to act in fulfilling his responsibilities for the remainder of the process. As the Information Commissioner is accountable to Parliament, and not employed by the ICO, the next steps will be determined by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

Edwards had voluntarily stepped back from his duties on 26 February to enable the investigation to take place. He continued to receive updates through his immediate support team on the work of the office and was available should his contribution be required.

During any period where a serving Information Commissioner is unable to act, the Deputy Commissioners take on the non-delegable Information Commissioner’s responsibilities. As set out in the ICO's Scheme of Delegation, which was last reviewed and approved by the Commissioner in July 2025, this means these responsibilities will be undertaken by Deputy Commissioner and Chief Executive Paul Arnold. DSIT has designated Paul as Temporary Acting Accounting Officer for the ICO for this period.

Paul Arnold said: “Throughout this complex and unprecedented situation, our priority has been to provide a safe and supportive environment for our staff that enables them to carry out their important regulatory work. I’ve been enormously proud of the professional way in which our work has continued across the past months, and the steps we have taken today will ensure that continues to happen.”

The ICO said that “to protect all parties involved and maintain the integrity of the process”, it was unable to provide further details at this stage. 

Edwards, a qualified lawyer, was appointed as Information Commission in December 2021. From February 2014 to December 2021 he was New Zealand Privacy Commissioner. During that time he chaired the International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners (now known as the Global Privacy Assembly), and was a member of the OECD’s Informal Group of Experts on Children in the Digital Environment.

This article first appeared on Local Government Lawyer's new site for public sector information governance professionals, www.info-gov.uk.