Give us more power, says data protection watchdog

The UK's data protection watchdog wants to be given more power to check companies are compliant with privacy laws.

Currently the watchdog must gain consent before inspecting an organisation for compliance with the Data Protection Act.

But giving evidence before the Home Affairs Select Committee, information commissioner Richard Thomas called for stronger powers to allow his office to carry out inspections and audits.

He said in a statement: "People now understand that data protection is an essential barrier to excessive surveillance. But it is wrong that my office cannot find out what is happening in practice without the consent of each organisation."

The commissioner also called for "privacy impact assessments" to make sure businesses tackle all the risks of new surveillance plans prior to their implementation and to minimise the threat to privacy.

Thomas said it is essential that before new surveillance technologies are introduced, full consideration is given to the impact on individuals and that safeguards are in place to minimise intrusion. These assessments are already commonly used in other countries such as Australia and the US.

He said: "No one wants their electronic footprint to expose every aspect of their daily life," and warned that if action is not taken the trust and confidence which individuals must have in all organisations that hold information about them will be put in jeopardy.

The Information Commissioner's Office is developing an Information Sharing Code of Practice and updating the CCTV code of practice, both due to be published during the coming year.