The British government will propose emergency legislation...

The British government will propose emergency legislation Monday to alter its data retention and communications intercept programs, according to a Thursday news release (http://bit.ly/1mSvsO8). The move is in response to a recent European Court of Justice ruling to eliminate the European Data Retention Directive, citing privacy and human rights issues, said Covington and Burling data protection lawyer Daniel Cooper. The ruling “left many unsure about the status of member state data retention rules,” he said by email Thursday night. Previously, the U.K. government had required telecom providers to retain data for 24 months. Its proposal Monday would implement a 12-month retention period, said Cooper. “Clearly, the government intends to plug that gap by passing similar provisions as a primary act of law.” Human Rights Watch (HRW) was angered by the tactic. “Given what we know about the UK’s involvement in mass surveillance, it is outrageous that the government wants to rush through emergency legislation that allows the government to monitor people not suspected of any wrongdoing,” said Izza Leghtas, Western Europe researcher with HRW. The civil rights advocate said the proposed legislation will expire in 2016. “A proper debate about how to reform surveillance powers is long overdue and it has to happen now, not in 2016,” Leghtas said. As part of its surveillance reforms, Cooper said the British government will propose to further restrict access to collected communications data, establish a Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) similar to the American’s PCLOB and launch discussions with the U.S. government and Internet companies on cross-border data sharing. The British government also plans to start a review, to be completed by 2016, of its communications intercept law, he said. “Now, we will have to wait and see whether this legislation, when adopted, will be challenged as being incompatible with European privacy and human rights law."