Government announces new data laws intended to improve public services
The Government is set to introduce new data laws aimed at streamlining administrative tasks for frontline workers and improving public services.
The Data Use and Access Bill will "unlock the secure and effective use of data for the public interest," according to a government statement announcing the new bill.
According to the Government, the Bill's key measures include cutting down on bureaucracy for police officers, freeing up 1.5 million hours of their time a year.
It will also make patients’ data easily transferable across the NHS so that frontline staff can make better informed decisions for patients more quickly, freeing up 140,000 hours of NHS staff time every year, speeding up care and improving patients’ health outcomes.
Other changes will simplify important tasks such as renting a flat and starting work with trusted ways to verify identity online.
The Bill will also modernise the registration of deaths in England and Wales from a paper-based system to an electronic birth and death register.
The reforms will enable registrations, which are required by local authorities, to be carried out over the phone, removing the need for face-to-face registration while retaining that choice.
The measures will be underpinned by a revamped Information Commissioner’s Office, with a new structure and powers of enforcement.
The government said that safeguards will remain in place to track and monitor how personal data is used.
Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said: "With laws that help us to use data securely and effectively, this Bill will help us boost the UK’s economy, free up vital time for our front-line workers, and relieve people from unnecessary admin so that they can get on with their lives."
Information Commissioner John Edwards welcomed the introduction of the Bill in the House of Lords.
He said: “This is an important piece of legislation which will allow my office to continue to operate as a trusted, fair and independent regulator and provide certainty for all organisations as they innovate and promote the UK economy.”
The ICO will publish its full response “in due course”.
Adam Carey
