Privacy report condones British intelligence data collection but calls for citizens’ privacy to be respected

A new report on privacy says British intelligence services should retain the power to collect data on the private communications of UK citizens en masse but that existing laws should be revised to respect individuals’ privacy.

A Democratic Licence to Operate was commissioned by former Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg in the wake of the Snowden revelations.

The report was written by a panel comprising former MI6 chief Sir John Scarlett, former MI5 director general Lord Evans andformer head of GCHQ Sir David Omand as well as investigative journalistHeather Brooke, Baroness Lane-Fox, professor of computer science Dame Wendy Hall and historian Lord Hennessy.

Among its key points are:

It states: “Despite the disclosures made by Edward Snowden, we have seen no evidence that the British government knowingly acts illegally in intercepting private communications, or that the ability to collect data in bulk is used by the government to provide it with a perpetual window into the private lives of British citizens.

“On the other hand, we have seen evidence that the present legal framework authorising the interception of communications is unclear, has not kept pace with developments in communications technology and does not serve either the government or members of the public satisfactorily. A new, comprehensive and clearer legal framework is required.”

It also argues that privacy concerns should be kept in mind from the beginning of the collection process rather than at the end when a human analyst looks at the data, as the intelligence agencies would prefer.

The report says: “Our privacy rights as individuals are engaged whenever these agencies embark upon such intelligence activity, including when the public’s data is accessed, collected, filtered and eventually examined by an intelligence analyst.

“At each stage, such activities must be demonstrably lawful, necessary and proportionate. Such requirements are essential if there is to be public confidence in the use of these powerful capabilities.”

This change in attitude towards individuals’ privacy was hailed by Ms Brooke as a significant shift.

She said:“In the age of big data, it is important to recognise that people’s privacy rights are engaged at the point of collection, not just when a human being sits down to look at the final analysis.

“We can’t pretend that intercepting an undersea cable filled with the world’s internet traffic doesn’t affect privacy simply because the data is held and analysed by computers. The mere fact it is accessed and collected is the concern.”

The report is the third this year in the wake in response to the Snowden revelations, the first was produced by Westminster’s Parliamentary Intelligence and Security Committee and the second by David Anderson QC, the independent reviewer of counter-terrorism laws.