Ministers are still mulling how they can collect communications data, and while quite rightly the debate about the ‘Snooper’s Charter’ centres on the threat to individual privacy, opponents also forget the threat such legislation would post for the UK’s economic recovery.
With good reason this Government has prided itself on being the most technologically friendly ever. Be it via the development of Tech City, the Future Fifty, the Enterprise Investment Scheme, reforming intellectual property or even the Entrepreneur Visa – the Government is ensuring that the UK becomes a place where internet-based start ups and established technology companies want to come and do business.
However, there is a risk that all of this good work would unwittingly be undone if we continue to proceed down a route full of unexpected costs and consequences. As successive governments have clamoured to get their hands on citizens’ communications data – it appears little considerations has been given as to how this will adversely affect the blossoming technology and electronic communications sector in the UK which is already worth nearly £55 billion and employs over 460,000 people.
The Comms Data plan — until it was vetoed by Nick Clegg — would have insisted that companies of a certain size collect and store all their customers’ data for a number of years — just in case the police or security services want to access it.
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