Giovanni Buttarelli, European Data Protection Supervisor told a Westminster eForum recently, “There is uncertainty over the legal repercussions of this unprecedented process, but the one certainty is that the European Union will continue to advance in the pursuit of maintaining the highest standards of protection for the personal data of people in the EU.”

Buttarelli said that no matter the outcome there will still be substantial dialogue between the UK and the EU over privacy and data protection.

He added that “For decades we have had common values and we have been building policies the UK influentially contributed to. We have a tradition of collaboration, and when it comes to rights such as the one to privacy and data protection, we will continue to pursue the same European-wide strategy.”

UK’s ICO also willing to cooperate

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s independent body which protects information rights, echoes these sentiments of continuity and cooperation in its Data Protection Bill, stating that it would continue to work closely with EU partners and institutions until Brexit. Post-Brexit, it plans to work to strengthen bilateral relationships with individual EU data protection authorities where appropriate.

The ICO’s International Strategy 2017 -2021, recognises the importance of the UK retaining a high standard of data protection as a fundamental right. While it believes that the implementation of GDPR will support this goal, it has said it would still seek to maintain a strong working relationship with the European Data Protection Board (EDPB).

At the moment, many things are still up in the air insofar as Brexit is concerned. Uncertainty about the future and potential impacts of the separation are at the forefront of many people’s mind. It would seem that despite Brexit the ICO and EDPB plan on bringing some form of stability in the shape of continued cooperation and communication over data and privacy protection.