This privacy notice sets out details about the way we process personal data that we collect from you and how we may use your information.

About us

The House of Commons respects your rights to privacy. In line with our responsibilities under the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018, this Privacy Notice explains the personal data that we collect and how we use the information.

In this Privacy Notice, references to ‘us’, ‘our’ or ‘we’ are to the House of Commons Administration. Everything that we do with your data – for example storing it, working with it or deleting it – is referred to as “processing”.

The Corporate Officer (Clerk of the House) is the Controller of any personal data processed as described in this Privacy Notice.

The Data Protection Officer for the House of Commons is the Head of Information Compliance:

Collection of your personal data

When you contact us, visit us, access or use our services either online, by post, in person or by other means, we may collect, store and use your personal data.

The personal data we are collecting via this web page are processed for business-related functions, marketing, feedback, consultation and ticketing purposes and the lawful bases for processing are:

  • The processing is necessary for Parliamentary functions
  • You have consented to the use of your personal data (for marketing subscription purposes)
  • The processing is necessary for our legitimate interests when balanced against your interests. The balance of interests is set out as follows:
    • The processing is for the purposes of the House of Commons legitimate interests, for example, if you have attended an event and/or a training session, we intend to collect your information for the purposes of asking you for feedback and contacting you about relevant events and/or training sessions in the future.
    • The processing is necessary to obtain feedback and improve our public engagement and parliamentary services.
    • Our legitimate interests do not override your rights as you can unsubscribe or request that your contact details or personal information be removed at any time.

Details about the lawful basis for processing personal data can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website.

Storage and retention of your personal data

The House of Commons will retain your personal data for as long as is necessary for the purpose it was collected. In most cases, a retention period will apply which can be found in the Houses of Parliament Authorised Records Disposal Policy.

If you have subscribed to one of our newsletters or research alerts, we will retain your information for as long as you are subscribed.

The retention period for all other purposes, including contact after events and/or training, is 12 months, after which the personal data will be disposed of securely.

Disclosure and security of your personal data

We take the security of your data seriously. All personal data you provide to the House of Commons will be stored securely, both physically and electronically, in accordance with our policies.

Some personal data controlled by us are held outside the UK. These data are predominantly held in data centres within the European Economic Area (EEA), for the purpose of hosting and maintenance. Regulations under section 17A of the DPA 2018 specify that all countries within the EEA are regarded as providing an adequate level of data protection. If personal data are transferred to a country outside the UK or EEA, the adequacy of that country and the organisations and systems processing the data is assessed to ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place.

Your personal data will be shared internally with the House of Commons Library Operations and Engagement Team, the House of Commons Library Communications Team, and the House of Commons Library Research Team.

We use internal and external services to manage your personal data. We may disclose your personal data to third parties when permitted to do so including:

  • with your consent
  • where we have a contract with a processor acting on our behalf
  • if we have a lawful basis for doing so
  • if we are under a duty to disclose or share your personal data in order to comply with any legal obligation. This includes providing your personal data to other organisations, such as the Police, for the purposes of prevention and detection of crime.

We may also share your personal data with other organisations where there is a lawful basis for doing so, such as the House of Lords administration (who is a separate Controller) for the provision of shared services to you.

We will never share or sell your personal data to other organisations for direct marketing purposes.

Your rights

We will ensure you can exercise your rights in relation to the personal data you provide to us. These are as follows:

  • Where we are relying on your consent to use your personal data, you can withdraw that consent or unsubscribe from our services at any time. Instructions are provided when we collect your data.
  • You can request access to the personal data we hold about you at any time by contacting the Data Protection Officer whose contact details are found at the top of this notice.
  • You can ask us to update your personal data if it changes. In certain circumstances, you can request we erase the personal data we hold, or ask us to stop or restrict processing if you have an objection.
  • You can ask for a copy of your information in a machine-readable format to allow you to obtain and reuse your personal data for your own purposes across different services (the right to data portability).
  • If you have any privacy-related questions or unresolved problems relating to the use of your personal data, you may contact us to complain by contacting the Data Protection Officer whose contact details are found at the top of this notice.
  • You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the supervisory authority, about our collection and use of your personal data. They can be contact at Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF, www.ico.org.uk.
  • Further details about your rights and the complaints process can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website.

A separate privacy notice covering email subscription services can be found on the UK Parliament website.

Last updated: 28 December 2020