Former information commissioner Richard Thomas has called for a 'step change' in data protection and greater resources for the Information Commissioner's Office.
In the ICO's annual report for 2008-09, prepared just before he stood down from the job in June, Thomas said it is "wholly unacceptable" that the ICO should need the consent of a data controller to inspect government and other organisations. The report was released on Tuesday.
Thomas argued that legislation currently before parliament to create the power to inspect public bodies is "seriously deficient without a sanction for those who ignore the so-called requirements and without extending our powers so we can also inspect the private sector".
Thomas also claimed that funding for the ICO is insufficient for its purpose. Its annual budget for data-protection work will be increased to £16m, but this will "remain tiny" compared to other regulatory bodies, he said.
The total annual cost of freedom of information across the whole of the public sector was estimated at just £35m in 2006-07, of which the ICO receives £5.5m. In the current year the ICO had no increase at all, despite dealing with 15 percent more cases then the previous year.
"Public finances are very tight, but — especially if the legislation is to be extended — the ICO needs adequate and longer-term funding to enable us to fulfil properly all our complaint, guidance and enforcement responsibilities," he said.
Implementation of a new record-management system is due to be completed in the next financial year, which is expected to help with the rising number of freedom of information complaints. The ICO closed 3,019 cases during 2008-09, an increase of 13.5 percent on the previous year.
The ICO's website, which received 20 percent more visits than in the previous year, added new features, including an upgraded search facility, a newsfeed, and has started a programme of 'user journeys' that focus on specific life events, with journeys on education and crime.
Thomas said there is support across the political spectrum for the ICO's work, and that Christopher Graham, who took over as information commissioner on 29 June, 2009, will inherit a committed and hard working ICO.
