Tech industry pushes Sunak to pass key data protection bill before the election
Top executives in the technology and media sectors are pressing the government to usher through two major bills before the looming general election.
The Data Protection and Digital Information Bill (DPDI) and the Media Bill are nearing their final stage of passing through Parliament and industry is pushing to get them over the line before Britain elects a new leader on 4 July.
Chris Combemale, the Data and Marketing Association (DMA), has urged the government and opposition parties to unite and pass the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill (DPDI), which updates the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
He said: “The government must make passing DPDI its number one priority in the next few days. After three years of consultation many aspects of the Bill have support across the political spectrum.
“We urge the government to make the necessary compromises on controversial issues to ensure the Bill passes before the election.”
Having collaborated with the government for three years on the DPDI, the DMA believes that key reforms in the legislation are vital to address issues hampering growth and customer experiences, such as cookie pop-up banners.
At the same time, leading figures from the UK broadcasting industry are calling on Parliament to seize the opportunity to modernise sector regulations.
Signatories, including the chief executives of Sky, ITV, BBC and Channel 4, stressed the importance of passing the Media Bill in a joint statement.
They said: “The Media Bill as currently drafted is widely supported across industry and Parliament itself and has undergone Parliamentary scrutiny in the Select Committee and both Houses of Parliament, having completed second reading and committee stage in both houses.
“The reforms proposed in the Bill will update key aspects of media legislation for the online TV era, to ensure audiences continue to benefit from the highest quality UK-originated content from the PSBs, and help the UK’s content sector thrive for years to come.”
It comes as the Media Bill is in the Lords for report stage today, where discussions are continuing ahead of the dissolution of Parliament on 30 May.
CityAM has approached the government for comment.
These calls for action come as the government has just passed the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill (DMCC), which is expected to receive Royal Assent tomorrow.
It will empower Britain’s competition watchdog to challenge companies which dominate large parts of the digital market, such as tech giants like Apple and Google.
The Coalition for App Fairness (CAF) has worked with a number of UK tech companies such as Spotify and Proton, to ensure the bill is passed.
Rick VanMeter, executive director of CAF said on Thursday: “We are thrilled to see the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill passed by the UK Parliament, which with strong enforcement will benefit businesses and consumers across the UK and beyond.”