In an article published by Retail Risk, Intellectual Property senior associate Sarah Simpson highlights a post-Brexit bill proposing a new UK data protection regime that would diverge from the European Union's (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Through the "Data Reform Bill", the UK government aims to "reduce the burden on businesses (including the retail sector), thereby reducing costs, improving trade, and in turn the economy."
Outlining several proposed changes under the bill, the article discusses potential implications for the retail sector and e-commerce. However, while the underlying objective is to reduce compliance requirements faced by UK businesses, the bill might have the unintended impact of imposing increased burdens. For example, the article explains there is a "strong argument that relaxing data privacy laws in the [United Kingdom] will create the reverse effect due to the extra territorial scope of the EU GDPR."
"Unless retail businesses only operate in the [United Kingdom] and don't process any personal data belonging to individuals located in the [European Union] (unlikely given the age of the internet and the ability to grow quickly on an international scale online), they will still need to conform," according to the article. "This will likely create a dual regime for the likes of the retail sector that will need to comply with, and deal with, personal data separately under the two regimes. One set of GDPR rules is enough for anyone! If businesses need to comply with differing sets of rules for different territories, they will likely face increasing difficulties rather than see any real benefit."
Given the risk of additional administrative burdens, the article emphasizes that UK lawmakers must think carefully regarding what the proposed changes under the bill might look like in practice.
"Post-Brexit Ramifications of UK Data Policy," Retail Risk, April 7, 2023
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.