The Information Commissioner鈥檚 Office (ICO) has set out a raft of new measures that it says will support the Government鈥檚 growth agenda.聽聽
Information Commissioner John Edwards met with Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves on Monday to agree on the data protection regulator鈥檚 commitments.聽
鈥淧ersonal data powers our economy, from retail to hospitality to healthcare,鈥� he said.
鈥淯nlocking the potential of this data is key to encouraging economic growth and investment 鈥� as long as the public can trust it will be appropriately protected.聽
鈥淭here鈥檚 a responsibility on all regulators to create an environment where businesses can flourish, particularly for the ICO as a whole economy regulator.聽
鈥淲e鈥檝e already helped tens of thousands of businesses and we鈥檙e providing the regulatory certainty and support that they need to safely innovate.鈥�
Bytes hits 拢2bn milestone amid double-digit growth under new boss
The ICO has committed to a number of new measures. These include publishing a free data essentials training programme for small businesses, supporting them to leverage the power of personal data and strengthen customer trust and helping them save at least 拢9.1m over three years.
It will also pilot an experimentation regime which aims to enable businesses to trial innovative new data-driven solutions under rigorous oversight.聽
A statutory code of practice will be introduced for private and public sector businesses developing or deploying AI, allowing them to unleash the possibilities of the technology while safeguarding the public鈥檚 privacy and strengthening the UK鈥檚 position as a global AI leader.
New guidance on international transfers of data will be published as it underpins around 40 per cent of UK exports and 20 per cent of imports. The ICO wants to make it easier for UK businesses to access new markets.