Privacy - another Labor victim

Privacy - another Labor victim

Privacy Awareness Week (24-30 August) is a time to focus on the need for heightening privacy protections in the age of rapidly advancing technology.  But the current NSW government shows absolutely no interest in doing so and there is little to celebrate in terms of support for privacy shown by the NSW government.

The privacy protection we have in NSW has been achieved over decades by ordinary people putting pressure on the government of the day to pass the required legislation.  The current Labour NSW government has destroyed much of what was achieved.

The Iemma government has knobbled Privacy NSW.  It does not have a full-time Privacy Commissioner and it has been gutted of staff  and expertise.  The Iemma government is killing it by neglect.

In late 2007 the Attorney General tabled a report of a review of the NSW Privacy Act – 3 years late – without any publicity.  And, no surprise, the report and the government's response are still not available to the public electronically.

NSW now has extremely weak privacy legislation overseen by a knee-capped privacy watchdog.  The previous Acting Commissioner capitulated to the government on bills that ring loud alarm bells for privacy experts and there is no suggestion his replacement, appointed this year, will be any better.

Labour has pushed through a number of pieces of legislation that have serious privacy implications (eg the Photo ID Card Bill, In-Car Police Video Bill and a trial of electronic health records.)  They have ignored the concerns of groups like NCOSS and the Australian Privacy Foundation.  The Liberals have supported these bills.

Privacy NSW is just one of a long line of independent watchdogs being killed off – think of the Inspector General of Prisons, the Anti-Discrimination Board, the Department of Women, the Community Services Commission and the Children's Guardian.

NSW residents have a right to be concerned about how private sector organisations and government agencies store and share their personal information,  about the security of personal information provided over the internet, about access to electronic health records and about surveillance in public places and at work.  They should also be concerned about why this Iemma government is not interested in providing suitable  protection for their privacy.

Poor privacy protection in NSW comes at a time in which increased powers are being handed to police, terror laws are being ramped up and video and internet surveillance are becoming more invasive.  So a disabled Privacy NSW and weak privacy legislation in NSW contributes to a lethal mix for privacy protection in NSW.