Following the EU referendum, there has been some uncertainty about EU legislation in the UK, including the recently agreed EU Data Protection Regulation, which became law in May 2016. This marked the culmination of several years of lobbying by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) and its research partner organisations.
The law must now be implemented in all member states, including the UK, by May 2018.
The RCP has joined a coalition of other leading academic, patient and research organisations in supporting UK government implementation of this important piece of legislation for medical research. The coalition states:
'Personal data is a vital resource for research that can save and improve lives. The Data Protection Regulation provides a strong basis for the safe use of personal data in research. National governments now have a crucial role to play in implementation.
If the Data Protection Regulation or something similar is implemented in the UK, the UK government should:
- introduce clear laws for research with safeguards and exemptions that support research while respecting people’s privacy
- work across government departments and with the research community to ensure that laws and guidance are practical, proportionate to any risks, and build on current good practice
- work with other countries to promote harmonisation and compatibility between national systems where possible, to facilitate cross-border research.'