Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill

Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 4:45 pm on 5 March 2008.

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Photo of Lord Hunt of Kings Heath Lord Hunt of Kings Heath Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Ministry of Justice, The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice 4:45, 5 March 2008

Blasphemy approaches, but this is an important discussion which I am sure that we will come back to at Report. I understand exactly what the noble Earls, Lord Onslow and Lord Northesk, are driving at when they raise concerns about where information is going and the impact of information sharing. They will also expect me to say that there are many advantages to that sharing of information, both in the benefit that we, as individuals, get from a joined-up approach to services, for instance, and in the protection of the public from criminal activity. The noble Earl, Lord Northesk, referred to legislation and information kept on children. I refer him to the tragic death of Victoria Climbié and the report that came from it. If I recall, it showed that there were eight or nine different agencies involved and that if only they had shared some information, they may have saved her from the tragic consequences. There is a balance and there are many advantages. Equally, I accept that we cannot have a cavalier approach and that we have to have rigorous safeguards in place that assure the public that information is shared only where necessary.

It is a serious matter, which is why a number of pieces of work are now being undertaken by the Government in the light of the general concerns that the noble Earls have raised and in the light of the particular issue in relation to HMRC, which noble Lords have referred to. Of course, the clause can be seen as one component of the various matters that are being taken forward. In introducing her amendment, the noble Baroness, Lady Miller, referred to the Information Commissioner's report. I am not going to repeat what she said, but it highlighted the extent of the illegal trade in personal data and the corrosive effects that that has on society. That is why the Government were sympathetic to the argument that the existing penalties were not sufficient and it is why the clause is in the Bill.

In relation to the other amendments, which call for additional sanctions and provisions, on 17 December the Cabinet Office published an interim progress report on data-handling procedures in government. That confirmed our commitment to take legislative steps to enhance the ability of the Information Commissioner to provide external scrutiny of arrangements. We have already announced our intention to institute spot checks on central government departments and we are committed to consulting shortly on extending that to the entire public sector. There is also the Kieran Poynter review on HMRC procedures. We have had an interim report, which set out a number of measures that are to be taken, and a full report is expected in spring 2008. Sir Gus O'Donnell, the Cabinet Secretary, has also undertaken a review, and there is likely to be a consultation shortly on a number of the issues that he raised.

Clearly, we take this matter seriously. We are committed in principle to the introduction of new sanctions under the Data Protection Act for the most serious breaches of principles. The proposals that we will bring forward will be part of a consultation paper that is being written at the moment. I am sympathetic to the intent of the amendments proposing new sanctions under the Data Protection Act, but we should await the result of the consultation before considering what legislation should be taken forward.

Let me make it clear that the Government have no wish to curtail legitimate and responsible journalism. Obviously, we have listened with great interest to the debate and to the views of the media. Of course, I understand the points made by the noble Earl, Lord Erroll. The concern that has been raised is that the Bill's current provisions would have what is described as a "chilling effect" on responsible investigative journalism. This is not a straightforward issue and we have to be careful to get the balance right. As my right honourable friend the Prime Minister said in a speech on liberty on 25 October last year, we need to,

"make sure that legitimate investigative journalism is not impeded", while safeguarding personal privacy.

The proposed penalties in the clause are intended to strengthen the protection of individuals' rights and respect for their privacy. We think that the current definition of the offences in the Data Protection Act strikes the right balance between freedom of expression and privacy, but we want to put the matter beyond doubt.

Noble Lords are already well aware of the time pressures on this Bill, as the noble Lord, Lord Henley, implied. That is why I want to give notice that we intend to withdraw this clause on Report unless a satisfactory solution balancing these objectives can be identified by all the parties involved. We will of course seek to do that between Committee and Report, but it is important that we get this right and that we get the balance right. That is more important than anything else in consideration of this clause. I hope that that has given the Committee a clear view of the Government's commitment to the importance of these matters.