Data Protection Bill [HL]

Baroness Billingham Excerpts

Report: 2nd sitting (Hansard): House of Lords
Wednesday 13th December 2017 Lords Chamber

Nobody is proposing breaching international conventions to which we are a signatory, and there is nothing in the amendment to that effect. Indeed, all the points raised by the bodies have been addressed by my tabling the amendment before your Lordships’ House. I close by reinforcing my view that if we are to withdraw very important rights over personal data, medical information and details of blood and urine samples’ whereabouts from athletes, we should in return provide clarity in the Bill on the exact circumstances in which we are asking athletes to give up that information. I have done that simply by placing UKAD—the current leading body, funded by this country’s taxpayers—in the Bill to undertake that work and put its responsibilities and relationships with the governing bodies of sport into secondary legislation, which can come back to this House by affirmative resolution in due course. With those two minor changes to the Government’s original wording, I beg to move.

[Baroness Billingham (Lab)]

My Lords, I rise to express my support for the amendment of the noble Lord, Lord Moynihan, and the work that it encompasses. I regret that my contribution to this powerful legislation has been so limited. My defence is that a boring cocktail of illnesses has kept me from that task, only concluding with a total knee replacement that has in fact proved a triumph. I have followed your Lordships’ debate from afar. I appreciate fully how much work has gone into the amendments and how crucial the debates have been—but no more excuses for my backsliding.

This issue is not straightforward. The widely held public view is that sport must be seen to be clean and cheating must be eliminated. Bodies such as the UK Anti-Doping Agency should be powerful and expert enough not only to detect the use of performance-enhancing drugs but to prohibit them. The general public are frustrated and appalled when yet more cheating comes to light. Fair play in sport is one of its underlying qualities; it is a prime reason for a love of sport and the impetus for all of us—parents, teachers, coaches and administrators—to encourage people to participate. That is all the more reason to strengthen the powers of anti-doping organisations.

The athlete, himself or herself, must be totally responsible for what is in their body at all times. They are guilty before being proved innocent but there must be a balance regarding genuine errors, and they must meet the whereabouts test. We have the support of governing bodies, which lead the fight against doping. The challenge is that their technology must outpace the damaging technologies and pharmaceutical products that threaten clean sport. The work of the anti-doping agencies must encompass all sport in the UK and cover all levels, from amateur to elite. Doctors who facilitate cheating should be criminalised and held responsible. Clearly, UKAD should have overall authority to determine whether an event run by non-UK bodies when operating in the UK is up to UK standards. It cannot be right that international sports organisers can hold events that fail to meet the minimum standards in the fight against cheating.