Tuesday, December 04, 2007

Parliamentary 'Answer' of the Week

If you're an MP and want to know about data protection, or security procedures with databases or other IT in any department don't bother asking a question. It would appear that every single Minister is saying the same thing.
I refer the hon. Member to the statement made by right hon. friend the Prime Minister on 21 November, Official Report, column 1179. The review by the Cabinet Secretary and security experts is looking at procedures within Departments and agencies for the storage and use of data. A statement on Departments’ procedures will be made on completion of the review.
Not that they have anything to hide you understand!

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dizzy,

Do you know if anyone has asked them about the response to the HL committee paper on internet sceurity which was published around the same time?

I posted about it during the initial furore at http://loveandgarbage.livejournal.com/207825.html .

The government response to the HL report included delights such as

"Our evidence to the Committee highlighted the considerable work that is going on across Government to improve the security of the nation’s information infrastructure."

"The Government can therefore accept the spirit of the recommendation in that we must continue to deepen our understanding of the issue of personal internet security and what can be done to improve it, and indeed has taken some significant steps on this in recent years. We would not, however, accept the view of the Committee that the Government has taken a narrow view of this problem in the past. "

The rather wonderful

""We can accept that new forms of online activity, including the expansion of supply chains to include systems in a multitude of jurisdictions, poses new challenges for data protection enforcement.We do not accept that the incidence of loss of personal data by companies is on an upward path and we do not accept that the Government is indifferent to the problem."

We should take their words and feed them back to ministers

dizzy said...

I doubt anyone has.. will have a look.

Old BE said...

Are there any Parliamentary "contempt" rules? If not, there should be.

Anonymous said...

Dizzy might perhaps consider the effect on the system - and on the chances of the humble backbencher getting a straight answer -- of the several hundred PQs on IT security issues which Opposition frontbenchers have tabled since the Chancellor's statement.

Given the numbers of PQs rolling in, perhaps it's not unreasonable for departments to devise a common line and a holding strategy.

dizzy said...

How interesting, defending not answering a question. Feeble. Perhaps you might consider not being intellectually bankrupt?

Anonymous said...

Pretty naive of you to expect the Government to cough up anything but the bare minimum in response to a co-ordinated attack from the opposition front benches.

dizzy said...

pretty naive of you to assume that it's just opposition MPs asking isn't it?