The public is being invited to comment on a government consultation paper as the first stage of an official review of public and private sector information sharing.

The review being conducted by Information Commissioner Richard Thomas and Wellcome Trust director Mark Walport was triggered by the loss of two discs by HM Revenue and Customs containing the financial details of 25 million people.

The consultation will last for two months and the final report is due in June.

The review will look at the effectiveness of the Data Protection Act and the Information Commissioner's Office as well as provide recommendations on how data-sharing policy can be developed to ensure security and accountability.

Ovum analyst Graham Titterington said: " The law today is overly complex as well as being largely powerless - the government and its officials simply do not understand the value of the information they hold, and the cost of remedying data security failures."