London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Oct 20, 2025

EU rules UK data protection is ‘adequate’ in boost for business

EU rules UK data protection is ‘adequate’ in boost for business

Decision that allows information to continue to flow to and from UK could be revoked ‘immediately’
British data protection standards are “adequate”, the EU has ruled in a long-awaited decision that lets digital information continue to flow between the UK and the bloc. But Brussels warned Boris Johnson’s government the decision could be revoked “immediately” if it sees weakening UK standards.

Failure to get a positive decision would have risked plunging British businesses into disarray, leaving industries from banking to logistics scrambling to set up more costly, bureaucratic alternatives to share data.

The UK will retain “adequate” status for four years, but the commission warned that could be withdrawn at any time if UK law was no longer deemed to offer EU citizens protection over how their data was used.

The European Commission vice-president Věra Jourová said: “The UK has left the EU but today its legal regime of protecting personal data is as it was. Because of this, we are adopting these adequacy decisions today.”

She added that the commission had listened “very carefully” to concerns expressed by the European parliament, EU members and the European Data Protection Board, “in particular on the possibility of future divergence from our standards in the UK’s privacy framework”.

Under pressure from the European parliament, the commission put a four-year sunset clause on the adequacy decision, a safeguard applied to no other country, which reflects mistrust of the British government’s ability to protect EU citizens’ data.

Didier Reynders, the European commissioner in charge of data protection, said the adequacy decision could be withdrawn “immediately” if the commission had serious concerns.

“Of course we have a procedure and we will give the opportunity to the UK to react and to explain what are the possible solutions, if we have a problem,” he said. “But if there is a real urgency this can be done immediately. So it’s possible to stop the process or to suspend or amend if we have real concerns. It’s a unilateral decision of the commission to do that.”

John Foster, the director of policy at the Confederation of British Industry, said the breakthrough in the EU-UK adequacy decision would be welcomed by businesses across the country. “The free flow of data is the bedrock of modern economy and essential for firms across all sectors – from automotive to logistics – playing an important role in everyday trade of goods and services.”

The digital secretary of state, Oliver Dowden, said: “After more than a year of constructive talks, it is right the European Union has formally recognised the UK’s high data protection standards.”

During the Brexit transition period, the government largely copied key EU legislation into the UK statute book, notably the landmark General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Law Enforcement Directive, which governs data sharing in police and law enforcement.

Brexiters on the Tory backbenches are pressing Boris Johnson to ditch the “prescriptive and inflexible” GDPR. A taskforce set up by Downing Street to “seize new opportunities from Brexit” said GDPR should be replaced with UK laws on data protection. The EU’s GDPR “overwhelms people with consent requests and complexity they cannot understand while unnecessarily restricting the use of data for worthwhile purposes”, states the taskforce report drawn up by Iain Duncan Smith, Theresa Villiers and George Freeman.

The group said consumers needed stronger rights, while data should be “free[d] up” to allow the UK to capitalise on artificial intelligence and data-driven healthcare. The prime minister promised to give their report “the detailed consideration it deserves”.

During the Brexit negotiations, analysts at the New Economics Foundation warned that the absence of a deal on data could cost UK firms up to £1.6bn, either in compliance costs or higher prices for goods and services. Any company that shares data between the UK and EU – via payroll or health records – could be affected if Brussels decides to withdraw adequacy.

Only 12 countries, including Canada, Switzerland and New Zealand, have positive adequacy decisions from the EU. The US was deemed partially adequate, but these decisions have been thrown out twice by the European court of justice. The two legal victories for the privacy campaigner Max Schrems concluded the EU-US agreements on data-sharing failed to protect EU citizens from snooping by US intelligence agencies.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
×