Fears of 'Orwellian dystopia' as councils, police and fire chiefs agree to share information » Local government » 24dash.com

A campaign group today expressed fears of an "Orwellian dystopia" after councils, police and fire chiefs signed the first information-sharing agreement of its kind in the UK.

The Dorset Over-Arching Information Sharing Protocol allows data to be passed faster and easier between the county's public sector bodies including the police, fire service, education chiefs, social workers and housing staff.

It is the first generic agreement of its kind in the country and was signed by bosses from six district and borough councils, the two unitary authorities of Bournemouth and Poole, Dorset County Council, Dorset Police and Dorset Fire and Rescue Service on May 8.

Supporters of the agreement say it aims to stop tragedies such as the murders of Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells by Ian Huntley or Victoria Climbie by the woman entrusted to care for her.

But Simon Davies, director of campaign group Privacy International, said such claims had no substance and added: "The history of information sharing is a history of failure."

Problems could arise if the wrong information was circulated and repeated between partner agencies, or if information was corrupted due to flaws in the system, he said.

Mr Davies said it was a "fundamental right" for each individual to control the way their personal data was used, and added: "It shows disregard for the rights of voters.

"You can make whatever argument you want that the ends will justify the means but this is the 21st century and you cannot get away with it."

He added: "There is a contract expected by people that requires authorities to have regard for the rights of individuals, to ask their opinion and to tell them precisely what is proposed and then to set limitations on what is proposed so it cannot creep into an Orwellian dystopia."

The agreement follows the controversy over the case of a family who were tracked covertly in Poole, Dorset.

Jenny Paton and her partner Tim Joyce were spied on for nearly three weeks after Poole Borough Council wrongly suspected they had lied about living in the catchment area for Lilliput First School.

The same council has made similar checks on two other families in the last year under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA).

Pam Donnellan, chief executive of Bournemouth Borough Council, said: "Sadly, public safety can be compromised by breakdowns in communication and a lack of timely sharing of information.

"Such failures have often been highlighted in many of the tragedies that led to loss of life for vulnerable children and adults.

"Good systems and clear protocols for all public agencies to follow are vital and Dorset needs to be at the forefront of these developments."

Martin Baker, chief constable of Dorset Police, said: "In order to protect the public, it is vital that partner agencies are able to share accurate, timely and relevant information swiftly, efficiently and securely.

"On too many occasions tragedies have occurred across the country as a result of poor information sharing between public services.

"That is indefensible and we have to do everything that we can locally to ensure that Dorset remains safe and becomes even safer."

David Wilson, data protection officer at Dorset County Council, said: "It's the only generic information sharing protocol that I'm aware of. All the others tend to be either service specific or agency specific."