The Listener

According to The Observer, Jack Straw has had some sort of flash of insight and now reckons he suddenly "understand people's anxiety" over the data-sharing proposals that were to be included in the forthcoming Coroners and Justice Bill under Clause 152. He goes onto claim with no sense of irony whatsoever that "I have never had a piece of legislation that was not improved by public debate during its passage through parliament."

Hahahahahahahahahahahaha. Oh wait, he's being serious. Let me laugh harder. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Mercy.

Anyway, he's going to do us all a personal favour and take out all that stuff allowing whoever to compile whatever and use it for everything, not because he's really understood 'people's anxieties' that the law would allow for gross invasion of privacy (privacy clearly being something only a terrorist would want), that it would give rise to fears that the laws would allow for spying and are yet another blow to personal freedom and civil liberties. No. Come on. There were totally going to be safeguards. And it's not as if laws passed for one thing have been used inappropriately in the past or anything. Why would you even think that? Come off it. It's just that the public haven't properly understood the proposals. Hence the need, according to the article, for

a fresh public consultation on how to implement more limited proposals...which would allow government bodies to share information where there is clear benefit...

In other words, give us a minute to talk you all round and it'll be fine.

Clause 152

After coming across this request at Boing Boing and reading a little more about the proposed law and it's potential impact here I felt motivated to contact my own MP to register my concerns.

Dear Mr Boswell,
I'm not somebody who usually bothers to contact my MP over anything as I understand that my voice is simply one of many you have to listen to. I would, however, like to register my very strong objection to the provisions of Clause 152 of the Coroners and Justice Bill which I believe is currently being debated in the House Of Commons, and ask that you vote against the bill itself if this clause in particular is not removed.
I understand that under the proposed Information Sharing Order (ISO), any personal data about an individual obtained for one purpose could be passed on and used for another entirely different purpose without seeking the consent of the individual concerned. The idea that control over and access to my personal data including, as I understand it, sensitive information such as my medical records will be taken entirely out of my hands and handed over to the state to give away to whoever wants it is frankly terrifying to me. It must be up to me to decide what organisations or businesses can have access to my personal information, and for what purpose they can use it, and not the government. Clause 152 (along with the wider bill) is not only yet another threat to individual privacy and liberty but it also undermines existing data protection law. There is also the fact that for all it's claimed safeguards, the governement has proved time and again that it cannot be trusted to protect our personal data as made clear with the numerous high profile losses of confidential files.
Most troubling of all is the fact that this proposed law, the impact of which would be enormous, has been slipped in at the end of a controversial bill full of legislation that will draw most attention from the media and the wider public, as well as most, if not all, parliamentary time given to debating it. It is vital that clause 152 is debated openly and thoroughly as the government has absolutely no mandate for the proposals made.
Should this law come into being I would like it on record that I refuse to give my consent to having my details shared in this way.

I got a reply from my MP today which was short, but positive and indicated sympathy for my views. It would also appear that, perhaps fortunately, Tim Boswell (Con) is serving on a commitee that will be considering the Bill in detail. According to They Work For You Boswell has voted against ID card legislation and the like in the past which makes me a little bit hopeful that this part of the Coroners and Justice Bill at least will be abandoned or scaled back. But, judging by Boswell's tendency to vote strongly in-line with his party's position, this small amount of hope is dependant upon the Tory party as a whole being opposed to this law as well.