|
|
In the last of its major policy papers before resuming Brexit talks next week, the government called for an “early” agreement to keep personal data flowing and assure legal certainty for businesses.
The UK’s data economy is worth a potential £240bn according to the Confederation for British Industry, while three-quarters of all the UK’s cross-border data flows are with other EU countries.
“Our goal is to combine strong privacy rules with a relationship that allows flexibility, to give consumers and businesses certainty in their use of data,” said Matthew Hancock, the UK’s digital minister.
[...]Noting the UK will be fully compliant with EU data protection laws at the point of its departure in 2019, the government called for an early agreement from Brussels that would recognise Britain’s legal framework and open the way for a transition. “Early certainty around how we can extend current provisions, alongside an agreed negotiating timeline for longer-term arrangements, will assuage business concerns on both sides and should be possible given the current alignment of our data protection frameworks”, said the paper.
It also held out the possibility of striking a deal where personal data flows between the EU and non-EU countries are protected to the same degree as currently granted by European law. [...]
Full article on Financial Times (subscription required)