UK government could replace GDPR with British data protection system

The government has announced that it will seek to replace the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) with a new British data protection system.

Speaking at the Conservative party conference in Birmingham, Culture secretary, Michelle Donelan, said the change is being made as the current EU GDPR is, “limiting the potential of our businesses.”

She promises the new system will be more “business and consumer friendly.” Fingers crossed.

GDPR was introduced by the EU in 2018 and changed the way companies collect, process, and protect the personal information of EU citizens.

While the GDPR has many positive aspects, it has also had unintended consequences: legitimate marketing being made more difficult and website user experiences deteriorating, to name but two.

A working paper written by researchers based at Oxford University suggests that the GDPR “caps” businesses profits by 8%.

Donelan added: “Our plan will protect consumer privacy and keep their data safe while retaining our data adequacy so that businesses can of course trade freely.

"I can promise to you here today that it will be simpler, and it will be clearer, for businesses to navigate...Our new data protection plan will focus on growth and common sense....No longer will our businesses be shackled by lots of unnecessary red tape.”

The statement comes less than four months after the announcement of a GDPR replacement, the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill, which was due to have its second reading in Parliament on 5 September. This was cancelled after the announcement of Liz Truss as the new prime minister.

Watch this space!