Data (Use and Access) Bill becomes law, redefining UK data sharing | Total Telecom

British people will benefit from new laws which will make their day-to-day lives easier – from slashing grocery bills and cutting traffic jams to speeding up NHS diagnoses – as the Government delivers on manifesto commitments.

It comes as the Data (Use and Access) Act has today (19^th June) received Royal Assent, unleashing the power of data into the British society and economy.

The new data regime is set to pump £10 billion into the British economy over the next decade – by cutting NHS and police bureaucracy, speeding up roadworks, and turbocharging innovation in tech and science.

Measures in the Act will ensure healthcare information – like a patient’s pre-existing conditions, appointments and tests – can easily be accessed in real time across all NHS trusts, GP surgeries and ambulance services, no matter what IT system they are using. Enabling data sharing across platforms will save NHS staff 140,000 hours a year in admin, giving them more time to care for patients and make better informed decisions for them more quickly – speeding up diagnoses and treatments for the British people.

Delivering on a manifesto commitment, the Act boosts the development of technology such as price comparison apps that can provide hyper personalised experiences to people so they can save money and time with bills and food shops. The new laws will broaden the access that third parties, like energy suppliers, have to consumer data.

For example, consumers will be able to share data on their energy usage which will help create more accurate price comparisons, informing what utility provider best suits their needs. This measure will give consumers the ability to compare utility prices, find better deals, and reduce their energy use, as well as foster tech innovation and boost competition, which will ultimately grow the UK economy.

“For too long, previous governments have been sitting on a goldmine of data, wasting a powerful resource which can be used to help families juggle food costs, slash tedious life admin, and make our NHS and police work smarter,” said Technology Secretary Peter Kyle. “These new laws will finally unleash that power for hardworking people – putting cash back in pockets and boosting vital public services, all part of our Plan for Change.”

Another key manifesto commitment the Act will deliver on is legislation to help bereaved parents get the answers they deserve when social media activity is linked to the death of their child. The new laws will establish a data preservation process that will require Ofcom, when notified by a coroner, to issue a data preservation notice to social media companies supporting their investigations into the death.

The data regime will also ease the frustrations of traffic by creating a National Underground Asset Register, a map of the country’s underground pipes and cables, which will allow construction workers to instantly see their exact location – information which currently takes six days to access. Slashing the average data-sharing process to six seconds, workers in the field will have quick access to a rich view of buried assets, helping them make more informed decisions on how to carry out works safely and efficiently – speeding up roadworks and closures and reducing delays for those on the road.

By legislating on digital verification services and introducing trusted digital verification tools, people will be able to prove their identity online more easily. This will simplify important tasks such as renting a flat and starting work. The measures will give companies who provide tools for verifying identities the ability to get certified against the government’s stringent trust framework of standards, and receive a ‘trust mark’ to use as a result. As well as increasing trust in the market, these efficiency gains will boost the UK economy by £4.3 billion over the next decade. 

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