Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment has been made of the adequacy of information-sharing frameworks in enabling victims of domestic abuse to be notified if their abuser enters the United Kingdom; and whether steps will be taken to ensure that, where appropriate safeguarding concerns exist, the application of the UK GDPR and related provisions does not prevent the sharing of such information with victims.

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is a top priority for this government. This is why we have made it our mission to halve levels of VAWG in a decade, using every lever available to us. Information sharing can help to safeguard victims or potential victims against domestic abuse.

The UK has well-established mechanisms for the mutual exchange of information on convicted criminals with foreign partners on a case-by-case basis, including via multilateral and bilateral agreements, such as INTERPOL and the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement.

The police have common law powers which enable them to proactively share information where it is necessary to protect individuals from harm. UK’s data protection legislation allows for personal data to be processed to pursue legitimate aims. Chief officers are responsible for determining how these powers are applied locally, in line with guidance from the College of Policing and National Police Chiefs’ Council, and must ensure that any disclosures comply with UK GDPR, the Human Rights Act 1998 and other relevant legislation.