Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to develop new bilateral agreements to facilitate transfers of personal data between businesses in the UK and the United States after 31 December.

International data transfers are vitally important to global economies and societies and we look forward to developing and supporting mechanisms in the future that can best facilitate international data transfers. The UK Government is committed to ensuring high data protection standards and supporting UK organisations on international data transfer issues.

The UK Government is working with international partners, including the United States and other stakeholders on initiatives that reduce the burdens and barriers on organisations transferring personal data (especially in priority sectors such as tech, manufacturing, finance and health, which are particularly reliant on data flows). This is so that we can unlock the value of data while also providing trust and confidence that personal data is protected.

From the end of the transition period, the UK will have an independent policy on data protection and data transfers, including the ability to conclude its own data adequacy agreements.