Viscount Camrose (Con)

My Lords, this sequence of amendments is concerned with the publication and availability of guidance. Decision-makers are individuals responsible for deciding if a person has satisfied the conditions for authorisation to receive customer or business data. They may publish guidance on how they intend to exercise their functions. Given the nature of these responsibilities, these individuals are deciding who can receive information pertaining to individuals and businesses. The guidelines which set out how decisions are taken should be easily accessible and the best place for this is on their websites. Following on from this point, Amendment 12 would require this guidance to be reviewed annually and any changes to be published, again on decision-makers’ websites, at least 28 days before coming into effect. This would ensure that the guidelines are fit for purpose and provide ample time for people affected by these changes to review them and act accordingly. Amendments 13 and 14 seek to create similar requirements for enforcers—that is, a public authority authorised to carry out monitoring or enforcement of regulations under this part. Again, given the nature of these responsibilities, the guidelines should be easily accessible on the enforcer’s website and reviewed annually, with any changes published, again on their website, at least 28 days before coming into effect. This will, once again, ensure that the guidelines are fit for purpose and provide ample time for people affected by these changes to review them and act accordingly. Finally, Amendment 15 would require the Secretary of State or the Treasury to provide guidance on who may be charged a fee under Clause 6(1) and to review it annually. Ensuring the regular review of guidelines will ensure their effectiveness, and the ready availability of guidelines will ensure that they are used and observed. I therefore believe that these amendments will be of benefit to the functioning of the Bill and should be given consideration by the Minister.