§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether the Connexions Service has power to obtain information about individual young people from(a) the Benefits Agency, (b) youth services,(c) social services departments, (d) local education authorities, (e) youth offending teams and (f) the police. [42131]
§ Mr. Ivan Lewis[holding answer 11 March 2002]: The Learning and Skills Act 2000 enables all these organisations to provide information to Connexions.
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which information local provider databases within a Connexions partnership they are required to retain about 13 to 19-year-olds, which they are required to pass on to the partnership, regional databases and national database; and what right individual data subjects have to prevent information being passed on. [42135]
§ Mr. Ivan Lewis[holding answer 11 March 2002]: Local providers are required to provide information to Connexions partnerships according to the terms of section 117 of the Learning and Skills Act 2000.
There is no current requirement for Connexions partnerships to pass any individual data to a regional or national database. Aggregated information is required to be provided for management information purposes.
The rights of individual subjects to prevent information being passed on are safeguarded by the Data Protection Act.
953WWe are looking to improve the information that is available to Connexions partnerships and personal advisers, to support their service to young people while respecting the principles of the Data Protection Act. This will be done through the introduction of a new Connexions Customer Information System, which is currently being developed.
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what information is collected by the Connexions service about children and young adults(a) with and (b) without the agreement of the data subject; from what sources; and whether data will be (i) retained and (ii) passed on to other agencies without the agreement of the data subject. [42145]
§ Mr. Ivan Lewis[holding answer 11 March 2002]: Local Connexions partnerships are building the information systems needed to offer the most effective service to young people. Their activities take place within the framework of the Learning and Skills Act 2000, and partnerships also need to observe the principles of the Data Protection Act. Partnerships are data controllers in their own right; my Department supports them with advice and guidance.
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills with which other Government operated databases the national Connexions database will be cross-matched; and if data subjects on those databases will(a) be informed and (b) have the right to opt out of such matching. [42332]
§ Mr. Ivan Lewis[holding answer 11 March 2002]: We are examining what national approaches will be appropriate to support the work of local Connexions partnerships. Feasibility testing is at an early stage. In part this involves looking, in co-operation with the office of the Information Commissioner, at how to make best use of the Child Benefit Register and schools data sources.