Statistics and Registration Service Bill

As we have heard, the amendment relates to the appointment of approved researchers by the board. As we discussed earlier, the Government are giving the board a function of promoting statistical research, allowing it to give academics and statistical researchers access, with tight controls, to some of the wealth of government data it holds, benefiting the wider public through the provision of better research and statistics. The amendment would insert the requirement that the board, when appointing an approved researcher, must consider whether there are appropriate safeguards to guarantee data protection. I reassure the Committee that, as my noble friend Lord Davies explained, the Government consider it essential that there be strong confidentiality safeguards to give people confidence that their personal data will be held securely by the board. Furthermore, I reiterate that the Bill is not intended to make the Statistics Board a repository or conduit for the widespread sharing of information throughout government, beyond, of course, replicating the existing situation. A great number of safeguards are in place to ensure adequate data protection when the board promotes statistical research. However, the key point is that we do not consider it necessary to specify in legislation that the board must expressly consider that there are appropriate safeguards to guarantee data protection when appointing an approved researcher. The Bill specifies that the board must periodically publish the criteria on which it will appoint approved researchers. We would expect these criteria to include a consideration of the safeguards in place to guarantee data protection. However, given that a number of specific and general legal safeguards are already in place, we do not think that it is necessary to specify this in the legislation. I hope that the noble Earl, Lord Northesk, is satisfied with the information I have given and that he will withdraw the amendment.