On 23 October, the UK’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) introduced the new Data (Use and Access) Bill (DUA Bill) to Parliament.
This featured in the King’s Speech on 17 July, when the new UK Labour Government announced its plan to introduce a new data protection bill (originally named the Digital Information and Smart Data Bill). Generally, the new bill is aimed at improving access and sharing of data in general in order to benefit public services and public protection. This comes after the lapse of the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill (DPDI Bill) under the previous Conservative government.
The DUA Bill makes provision for:
- access to customer data and business data;
- services consisting of the use of information to ascertain and verify facts about individuals;
- recording and sharing, and keeping of registers, of information relating to apparatus in streets;
- keeping and maintenance of registers of births and deaths;
- the regulation of the processing of information relating to identified or identifiable living individuals;
- privacy and electronic communications;
- Information Commission;
- information standards for health and social care;
- grant of smart meter communication licences;
- disclosure of information to improve public service delivery;
- retention of information by providers of internet services in connection with investigations into child deaths;
- providing of information for purposes related to the carrying out of independent research into online safety matters;
- retention of biometric data;
- services for the provision of electronic signatures, electronic seals and other trust services; and
- for connected purposes.
Some of these provisions were already planned under the previous Government’s DPDI Bill such as the strengthening of the UK’s Data Protection Regulator’s powers with a more modern regulatory structure with a CEO, Board and Chair.
The first reading has taken place and this stage is a formality that signals the start of the DUA Bill’s journey through the House of Lords. The next stage is a second reading at the House of Lords where there will be a general debate on all aspects of the DUA Bill. This is yet to be scheduled.
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More information about the Bill, including the full text, can be found here: https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3825
