Data Protection Act 2018: Children

Lord Kennedy of Southwark Excerpts

Thursday 4th March 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Barran (Con)]

I entirely concur with the noble and learned Baroness.

[Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, when I read the government response to the call for evidence, it struck me that it is as important, if not more so, to take account of and reflect on adequate protections and to ensure that they are in place for young people, who evidently have a distinct lack of knowledge and awareness about, for example, how an advertiser might use their personal data. If the noble Baroness agrees with me on that point, what thought have she and her department given to delivering that extra protection by non-legislative means? If she has any examples to share, I am sure the House would welcome them.

[Baroness Barran (Con)]

The noble Lord makes an important point, particularly in relation to adtech. As he will be aware, the ICO has recently reopened its investigation into it, which it had to pause last year because of Covid-19 constraints. If it is to be effective, our media literacy strategy needs to cover all these points, including giving children and their parents an understanding of how their data is used.