With the UK having shown it can compete in the data economy, it’s a gamble that could pay off
The focus will be on growth and innovation: On Thursday, the UK Government announced its new “post-Brexit global data plans”. These include measures to boost the data economy and a string of ‘data adequacy’ partnerships with countries such as the US, Singapore, and South Korea among others. Details of the new data protection regime have not yet been set out, however it’s being labelled “pro-growth and innovation-friendly”. The Government also named John Edwards, currently New Zealand Privacy Commissioner, as its preferred candidate for the new Information Commissioner. The Government praised his experience in overseeing an independent country’s data regime also deemed adequate to the GDPR.
The Government had already signalled this would happen: Responding to the consultation on the forthcoming Data Strategy in May, the Government said it would build an “outcomes-based approach” instead of the “burdensome paperwork” often associated with GDPR. The recent attempt to introduce an opt-out system to share NHS data, whereby patients would be enrolled by default unless they opted out within six weeks, also raised concerns about the Government’s regard for high data protection standards. In July, the announcement of a plan for Digital Regulation went further in that direction, showing a resolve to “cut red tape” and put innovation at the heart of future policy. To be sure, the Government states that it wants to retain high standards of data protection, though it’s hard to see how it will square the circle.
A gamble that could pay off: A departure from GDPR could disrupt the trade agreement struck with the EU in 2020, which partly relies on the UK retaining adequacy with GDPR. The UK tech sector previously spoke in favour of retaining adequacy with GDPR in order to have easier access to the European market, and yesterday confirmed its position that the UK will need to reassure existing partners such as the EU. However, the gamble could pay off. The DCMS estimates that UK businesses attracted £1.8bn in funding for AI-based technologies in 2020 – more than twice as much as France and Germany combined. This suggests that the UK can compete with the EU in the data economy – especially if it strikes the right partnerships. It remains to be seen whether businesses will consider the scale of the EU market more attractive than the pro-innovation framework the UK is looking to build.
