§ Mr. CohenTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy what data information systems his Department has(a) agreed and (b) been consulted about with a view to taking part in; what are the criteria for inclusion in such systems; whether they will be linked to (i) the police national computer and (ii) other computer systems; what data protection provisions apply to them; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. WakehamMy Department has established links with the following organisations for the following purposes:
Organisation and Purpose
- HM Paymaster General—Pay-roll
- Department of Trade and Industry—Accounts and Library Services
- British Geological Survey—Petroleum Engineering data.
- AEA—Energy Technology Data
- HMIP—Radio-active Incident Monitoring.
- OECD—Transferral of papers.
My Department also subscribes to several commercial databases such as Lexis and those available with BT Gold.
The main criterion used in deciding whether to join a system is whether it would further the objectives of the Department in a cost-effective manner. My Department is not linked to the police national computer. All systems which contain data on personnel are registered with the Data Protection Registrar.