Does the Data (Use and Access) Act deliver: innovation and opportunity?

In this short series of podcasts, senior knowledge lawyer, Emma Keeling, and A&O Shearman’s data consultant and former ICO Deputy Commissioner, Steve Wood, take a look at some of the key data protection and e-privacy aspects of the UK’s Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (the DUAA).

In focusing on the data protection and e-privacy developments, they consider what has changed, but most importantly what that means in practice for businesses and organisations subject to the UK’s GPDR, Data Protection Act and Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR).

They consider if and how the DUAA can support innovation and technological developments, how the DUAA may relieve organisations of their day to day compliance burden, what is new for the ICO, and the implications of changes to PECR.

One of the UK Government’s primary stated aims of the DUAA is to unlock the secure and effective use of data, encouraging innovation. The ICO in its summary documentation flags a number of amendments as being supportive of that agenda.

In the first podcast, Emma and Steve will be looking today at changes to the requirements for:

• automated decision making,
• the purpose limitation principle and
• updates regarding research, archiving and statistical purposes of processing.

 
Since recording, regulations have been made to bring into force further DUAA provisions, as from 20 August 2025. In relation to the content relevant for this podcast, these include provisions regarding, amongst others, special categories of personal data (s. 74 DUAA), Secretary of State regulations (s. 107 DUAA) and general minor amendments (s. 108 DUAA).

These podcasts assume some knowledge of data protection and you can read more on the background of the DUAA in our blogs here, here, here, here, here, here and here.