Clause 5
UK Borders Bill
9:00 am
John Hemming (Birmingham, Yardley, Liberal Democrat)
We are well aware that when biometric information is used—for instance in the DNA database, which is a form of biometric information but is not mentioned in the clause—there can be a tendency for it to be found in the possession of commercial companies when that is not appropriate. Companies then use that information for the production of research. The essence of permissive legislation is that we should not allow biometric information to float around and end up with commercial companies.
The Gershon report places substantial financial constraints on public sector organisations, so they need to find additional revenue. If they can say, “Well, the law allows us to sell this material to this company, and we can get some revenue in to cover our deficits,” we must draw a line and specify the purposes for which information can be used, by authorised persons only. That is the essence of the amendments.