Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what recent assessment she has made of the potential effect of the data flow provisions of the UK-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement on (a) data adequacy discussions with EU and (b) data flow agreements with the (i) US and (ii) other countries.

The UK is committed to maintaining high standards of protection for personal data, including when it is transferred across borders. Data provisions in Free Trade Agreements including the UK-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) are separate but complementary to the UK’s adequacy process and international data protection frameworks.

Through CEPA, we have agreed to avoid unjustified restrictions on the free flow of data between the UK and Japan, and committed to maintaining a legal framework that provides for the protection of personal information. CEPA only addresses data flows between the UK and Japan and does not address onward transfers to other jurisdictions.