Performance and Innovation Unit (Hansard, 11 April 2002)

§ The Prime Minister

The Performance and Innovation Unit's report"Privacy and Data-Sharing: The Way Forward for Public Services" is being published today. The report is important in the continuing development of customer-focused public services and sets out a strategy for improving the use of personal data in the public sector, while still safeguarding individual's privacy, including: (i) Making better use of technology to deliver more secure, more joined-up services——using technology to ensure data is secure at all times and to enable more joined-up, more personalised service delivery: (ii) Improving data quality——ensuring that the data held for public service delivery is good quality and up-to-date; (iii) Building public trust——ensuring that clear prinicples govern the way that personal information is used across the public sector and that there is greater oppenness in the interactions between public services and their consumers; and (iv) Addressing legal problems——ensuring that public services are clear about how the law regulates data-sharing, together with consultation on possible options for legislative changes.

There are a number of recommendations in the report where we need a proper debate before final decisions are made. On those recommendations——set out in the report——the Government is seeking views from all interested parties. For the other recommendations, the Government wants to see early progress in taking them forward as part of the strategy in delivering the overall objectives.

Copies of the report have been placed in the Vote Office a nd the Libraries.