Source · Select Committees · Business and Trade Committee
Recommendation 8
8
Deferred
Paragraph: 74
Government urged to update thinking on computer evidence in legal proceedings.
Conclusion
We ask the Government for an update on its thinking in relation to the use of computer evidence in criminal and/or civil proceedings and to prioritise this area of work at the Law Commission if it has not already done so.
Government Response Summary
The government's response focuses on the ICO's draft guidance on workplace monitoring and the EHRC's work on human rights and new technology, rather than addressing computer evidence in general criminal/civil proceedings or prioritising it at the Law Commission.
Paragraph Reference:
74
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is responsible for advising on the current position of the law and has produced draft guidance on monitoring at work.6 The guidance provides clarity and practical advice to help employers to comply with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018). The ICO published a consultation on this guidance, as well as another consultation around providing practical guidance about handling the health information of workers in accordance with data protection legislation. Both consultations closed in January 2023. 6 https://ico.org.uk/media/about-the-ico/consultations/4021868/draft-monitoring-at-work-20221011.pdf 10 Post-pandemic economic growth: UK labour markets: Government Response These consultations are the first part of an ongoing ICO project to replace its employment code of practice with new, UK GDPR-focused guidance which forms a key part its three- year strategy ‘ICO25’. monitor workers: • The Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA): Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) provides that everyone has the right to respect for private and family life. The Government recognised this is increasingly important due to the rise of homeworking. Workers’ expectations of privacy are likely to be significantly greater at home than in the workplace and the risks of capturing family and private life information are higher. Section 3 of the HRA provides that primary and secondary legislation must be read and given effect so far as possible in a way that is compatible with the ECHR. • The Equality Act 2010 (EA): Employers must not use surveillance in a manner which constitutes unlawful discrimination under the EA. • The Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA): Employees with two years continuous service are protected from unfair dismissal, which would encompass circumstances where employees’ Article 8 and UK GDPR rights have been breached in the algorithmic decision-making process that led to the dismissal. • The Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992: Employers must not use AI and surveillance to suppress union membership or activity by, for example, employing algorithms which are weighted towards refusing or terminating one’s employment if they join or participate in a trade union. The Equality and Human Rights Commission has committed to ensuring that there is improved understanding of how the Human Rights Act applies to laws concerning the use of new technology in terms of privacy, surveillance, and the use of data. It will identify potential gaps in the law created by the development and use of new technologies and advise on whether and how the law should be updated to provide protection from discrimination and breaches of rights.