Fears rise of UK data mountain

The government has announced two huge database projects - and leaks have revealed that a third holding children's details may be far more extensive than originally envisaged.

The plans are raising further concerns about the exponential rise in collection of citizen data.

The two new schemes - for young repeat offenders to be tracked using global positioning system-based (GPS) tags, and for a web-based births, deaths and marriages system - will mean the creation of enormous databases.

And documents leaked to the Sunday Times also indicate that plans for a children's database following the Climbie child abuse scandal (Computing 10 March) will include records for every child under 18 and information on school achievements, medical and social services records, and parents' marital status.

Computing launched the Data Debate campaign earlier this year to call for a review of government database plans in the light of the multiple parallel projects currently being developed.

The latest announcements underline the need for a review to address vital questions around the government's ability to effectively manage such vast information sources.

Without the appropriate working practice changes, ever-bigger databases will not deliver what is required of them, says Institute of Directors senior egovernment policy advisor Jim Norton.

'If I actually believed a children's database would stop another Climbie case I would give the system the benefit of the doubt, but I don't believe it - it is about how you use information rather than about the database itself,' he said.

'Unless the system is complemented with reforms of working practices about how the data is going to be used, it could just make the situation worse.'

Simply collecting more data is not the answer, it must be of a higher quality, says deputy Information Commissioner Jonathan Bamford.

'What we want is better quality information on people we are concerned about, not a lot of low grade information about everybody - which chimes with data protection rules which talk about data being relevant and not excessive,' he said.

'Sensible practice is to be more targeted in what you do, not just cast a wider net all the time.'