Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to ensure that the right to object to targeted online advertising is upheld under consent-or-pay models; and whether his Department plans to provide updated guidance on this issue in the context of the Information Commissioner’s Office’s guidance on consent-or-pay.

The Information Commissioner’s Office’s (ICO) guidance on this matter states that pay and consent models can be implemented in accordance with the data protection legislation, so long as websites ensure that consent to targeted advertising is fully informed and freely given. The guidance sets out a framework of factors that are important to consider when assessing whether a “consent or pay” model meets the required standard of consent.

The Government will continue to engage with businesses, the ICO and other stakeholders to monitor operation of these models.