Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Draft Political Declaration setting out the framework for the future relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union, published on 22 November, what is the intention of paragraph 40 regarding  "unjustified data localisation requirements"; and what range of subjects may be included under the provisions for "appropriate protection for... geographical indications" in paragraph 45.

The Political Declaration on the future relationship between the EU and the UK says “the Parties should establish provisions to facilitate electronic commerce, address unjustified barriers to trade by electronic means, and ensure an open, secure and trustworthy online environment for businesses and consumers”. This means that the UK and EU agree to work together to address unjustified barriers to the free flow of non-personal data, where they could disrupt businesses, such as rules restricting where data must be stored and processed. As for the ‘appropriate protection for...geographical indications’, the Political Declaration reaffirms that GI’s should be dealt with in the context of our future economic partnership; but it is also true that UK GIs such as Scotch whisky, Welsh lamb and Cornish Pasties will continue to be protected by the EU.

The detail of how this will apply under the future relationship will be for further negotiation with the EU after our exit in March 2019.