Baby P: Government lawyer apologises for handling of Sharon Shoesmith court case – Daily Telegraph

Posted June 17th, 2010 in government departments, news, reports, solicitors by sally

“The head of the Government’s legal team has apologised for failings in the preparation of a high-profile court case involving Sharon Shoesmith, the council chief blamed for the Baby P scandal.”

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Daily Telegraph, 17th June 2010

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

One in four FOI requests turned down by public bodies – Daily Telegraph

Posted June 1st, 2010 in freedom of information, government departments, news, statistics by sally

“Almost one in four Freedom of Information requests are being turned down by Government departments and public bodies, and the trend is getting worse.”

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Daily Telegraph, 31st May 2010

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Protocol between Lord Chancellor and Law Commission – Ministry of Justice

Posted March 30th, 2010 in government departments, Law Commission, Ministry of Justice, news by sally

“The Lord Chancellor and the Law Commission for England and Wales have agreed a statutory protocol governing how Government departments and the Law Commission should work together on law reform projects.”

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Ministry of Justice, 29th March 2010

Source: www.justice.gov.uk

Justice and Home Office: Hundreds of staff to be relocated from capital – The Independent

Posted March 25th, 2010 in civil servants, government departments, Ministry of Justice, news by sally

“Hundreds of civil servants working in the courts and justice system are to lose their jobs or face relocation after Jack Straw announced the abolition of a third of his department’s agencies.”

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The Independent, 25th March 2010

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Freedom of information – update on recent FoI cases – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted December 10th, 2009 in freedom of information, government departments, news, remuneration by sally

“The recent controversy over bonuses paid to civil servants employed by the Ministry of Defence highlights the public interest in salaries and bonuses of public sector officials.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 10th December 2009

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Slaughter may lose its legal stranglehold on banking – The Times

Posted October 29th, 2009 in banking, government departments, law firms, news, tenders by sally

“Slaughter and May could lose its crown as the Government’s preferred legal adviser on the banking crisis. In the biggest legal shake-up since the bank bailouts started two years ago, the Treasury is asking other firms to tender for the business.”

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The Times, 29th October 2009

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

MoJ admits personal data breaches – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted September 18th, 2009 in data protection, government departments, Ministry of Justice, news by sally

“Nearly 2,000 people have had personal information about themselves lost by the Ministry of Justice over the past year, in a series of incidents listed in the department’s accounts, published last week.”

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Law Society’s Gazette, 17th September 2009

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Government surveillance response ‘inadequate’, say Lords – OUT-LAW.com

Posted June 23rd, 2009 in data protection, government departments, news by sally

“The Government’s response to a Parliamentary report on the monitoring and legislation surrounding surveillance is ‘inadequate’ and it has ‘paid insufficient attention’ to the report’s recommendations, a follow up report has said.”

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OUT-LAW.com, 22nd June 2009

Source: www.out-law.com</a

Royal secrets withheld under revised information rules – Independent on Sunday

Posted June 15th, 2009 in freedom of information, government departments, news, royal family by sally

“Members of the public and journalists will be banned from seeing the contents of secret documents on the Cabinet and Royal Family under measures quietly announced by Gordon Brown last week.”

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Independent on Sunday, 14th June 2009

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Are government databases excessive? – The Times

Posted March 27th, 2009 in data protection, government departments, news, privacy by sally

“A report finds almost a quarter of major databases are illegal. Is the data storage disproportionate?”

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The Times, 27th March 2009

Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

The Big Question: Are there illegal government databases and what can we do about it? – The Independent

Posted March 24th, 2009 in data protection, government departments, human rights, news by sally

“The Big Question: Are there illegal government databases and what can we do about it?.”

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The Independent, 24th March 2009

Source: www.independent.co.uk

ICO strengthens criticism of Government data sharing – OUT-LAW.com

Posted February 20th, 2009 in data protection, government departments, news by sally

“The Government’s controversial plans to share personal data between departments and with the private sector are ‘too wide’ and the safeguards ‘weak’ according to privacy watchdog the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).”

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OUT-LAW.com, 18th February 2009

Source: www.out-law.com

Whistleblower launches legal action against Foreign Office – The Guardian

Posted February 19th, 2009 in government departments, news, terrorism, whistleblowers by sally

“The Foreign Office faces further scrutiny over controversial aspects of its ‘dangerous’ counter-terrorism policy after a sacked whistleblower yesterday announced that he was beginning legal proceedings against it.”

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The Guardian, 19th February 2009

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Home Office guilty of data breach – BBC News

Posted January 22nd, 2009 in data protection, government departments, news by sally

“The Home Office broke data protection laws when a contractor lost a memory stick with information on thousands of prisoners, a watchdog has ruled.”

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BBC News, 22nd January 2009

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Government data sharing plan could extend to private sector – OUT-LAW.com

Posted January 16th, 2009 in data protection, government departments, news, privacy by sally

“A Government plan to allow more extensive sharing of personal data is not restricted to the public sector and could result in Government-collected information being shared with private companies, a privacy expert has said.”

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OUT-LAW.com, 16th January 2009

Source: www.out-law.com

Big Brother database a ‘terrifying’ assault on traditional freedoms – The Independent

Posted January 15th, 2009 in data protection, government departments, news, privacy by sally

“Sweeping new powers allowing personal information about every citizen to be handed over to government agencies faced condemnation yesterday amid warnings that Britain is experiencing the greatest threats to civil rights for decades.”

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The Independent, 15th January 2009

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Government failed to clamp down on data loss – Daily Telegraph

Posted January 12th, 2009 in data protection, government departments, news by sally

“Government departments have failed to tighten data handling rules despite losing 30 million personal files in two years, it has been disclosed.”

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Daily Telegraph, 12th January 2009

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Home Office reveals FOI policies – BBC News

Posted December 10th, 2008 in freedom of information, government departments, news by sally

“An email sent by mistake from the Home Office to the BBC has revealed that freedom of information requests are often first reviewed by ministers.”

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BBC News, 10th December 2008

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

New privacy row over lost data – The Guardian

Posted November 3rd, 2008 in data protection, government departments, news by sally

“The government was embarrassed by another data-loss scandal last night when the private details of up to 12 million people were put at risk after a memory stick was found in a pub car park.”

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The Guardian, 2nd November 2008

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Lost data official to be charged – BBC News

Posted September 29th, 2008 in government departments, news, official secrets act, prosecutions by sally

“The Cabinet Office official who left top-secret documents on a train in June is to be charged under the Official Secrets Act, the BBC has learned.”

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BBC News, 29th September 2008

Source: www.bbc.co.uk