Data Protection and Brexit : no immediate change

The Information Commissioner’s Office has today noted, in a statement on its website, that there will be no immediate change to the data protection regime following 31st January, the date on which the UK will leave the European Union. From 31st January until the end of December 2020 (the transition period) the ICO has confirmed it will be ‘business as usual for data protection’.

There is currently no clarity as to what the data protection landscape will look like at the end of the transition period but it is likely that steps will be taken to reach an adequacy decision during the transition period. This will ensure that data will continue to be able to flow freely between the UK and the European Union.

We will publish updates as appropriate. In the meantime, if you have any specific data protection queries, or require assistance with data protection compliance for your organisation please contact Caroline Redhead.

The ICO’s data protection statement and associated guidance can be found here.