§ Mr. Cohenasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will take steps to co-ordinate and tighten the existing guidelines operated by each police force in relation to access to (a) police computers generally and (b) the police national computer; and if he will make a statement;
(2) what action he proposes to implement the guidelines proposed in paragraph 38 of the report by the Police Complaints Authority on the police national computer as the basis for instructions to police forces regarding practices and procedures in relation to the national computer; if he will set a time scale for chief officers of police to comply; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Giles ShawAccess to the computer systems in operation in individual police forces is a matter for the chief officer concerned. The Association of Chief Police Officers has established a working party on data protection which will be issuing recommendations to chief officers covering the use, access, security and disclosure of information held on police computer systems.
As regards the police national computer, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk, Central (Mr. Lord) on Wednesday, 18 June at columns 540–41.