Data Reform Bill
“The United Kingdom’s data protection regime will be reformed.”
The purpose of the Bill is to:
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● Take advantage of the benefits of Brexit to create a
world class data rights regime that will allow us to create a
new pro-growth and trusted UK data protection framework that
reduces burdens on businesses, boosts the economy, helps
scientists to innovate and improves the lives of people in
the UK.
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● Modernise the Information Commissioner’s Office,
making sure it has the capabilities and powers to take
stronger action against organisations who breach data rules
while requiring it to be more accountable to Parliament and
the public.
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● Increase industry participation in Smart Data
Schemes, which will give citizens and small businesses more
control of their data. The Bill will also help those who need
health care treatments, by helping improve appropriate access
to data in health and social care contexts.
The main benefits of the Bill would be:
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● Increasing the competitiveness and efficiencies of UK
businesses by reducing the burdens they face, for example by
creating a data protection framework that is focused on
privacy outcomes rather than box-ticking.
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● Making sure that data can be used to empower citizens
and improve their lives, via more effective delivery of
public healthcare, security, and government services.
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● Creating a clearer regulatory environment for
personal data use that will fuel responsible innovation and
drive scientific progress.
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● Ensuring that the regulator takes appropriate action
against organisations who breach data rights and that
citizens have greater clarity on their rights.
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● Simplifying the rules around research to cement the
UK’s position as a science and technology superpower.
The main elements of the Bill are:
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● Ensuring that UK citizens’ personal data is protected
to a gold standard while enabling public bodies to share data
to improve the delivery of services.
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● Using data and reforming regulations to improve the
everyday lives of people in the UK, for example, by enabling
data to be shared more efficiently between public bodies, so
that delivery of services can be improved for people.
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● Designing a more flexible, outcomes-focused approach
to data protection that helps create a culture of data
protection, rather than “tick box” exercises.
Territorial extent and application
● The Bill will, in the main, extend and apply across the UK,
with some measures extending and applying to England and Wales
only.
Key facts
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● The UK General Data Protection Regulation and Data
Protection Act 2018 are highly complex and prescriptive
pieces of legislation. They encourage excessive paperwork,
and create burdens on businesses with little benefit to
citizens. Because we have left the EU, we now have the
opportunity to reform the data protection framework. This
Bill will reduce burdens on businesses as well as provide
clarity to researchers on how best to use personal data.
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● Analysis by the Department for Digital, Culture,
Media and Sport indicates our reforms will create over £1
billion in business savings over ten years by reducing
burdens on businesses of all sizes.
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● The UK’s data market represented around four per cent
of GDP in 2020, and data-enabled trade makes up the largest
part of UK international services trade (exports of £234
billion in 2019).
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● 2018 economic analysis by the Department for Digital,
Culture, Media and Sport and Ctrl-Shift estimates that the
productivity and competition benefits enabled by safe and
efficient data flows would create a £27.8 billion uplift in
UK GDP.
