ODPA invited to European Commission following adequacy decision

Published: 1 March 2024

Bailiwick of Guernsey Data Protection Commissioner Brent Homan will join high-level discussions in Brussels next week.

The focus will be on maximising the benefits of cooperation on safe data flows, and exploring new avenues for joint actions, including through enforcement cooperation.

The meeting takes place on Monday 4 March at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels.

The invitation comes after the European Commission (EC) concluded that personal data transferred between the European Union (EU) and the Bailiwick of Guernsey continued to benefit from adequate data protection safeguards.

“Cooperation with our International counterparts is an essential strategic pillar in serving the Bailiwick”, said Commissioner Homan. “We look forward to further partnership towards preserving Adequacy, and promoting a public and private sector in the Bailiwick that embraces compliance and elevates the level of trust and consumer confidence.”

Adequate status is essential to the continued success of the Bailiwick’s economy as it enables data flows to the island from the EU without requiring businesses to implement additional safeguards.

About the Office of the Data Protection Authority
The ODPA is the operational body that carries out the regulatory functions of The Data Protection (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2017 delegated by the Data Protection Authority. These include recording data breaches, investigating complaints, running education programmes and examining proposed legislation and how it may affect individual privacy. The ODPA strives to empower individuals to exercise their rights as well as to support organisations to meet their compliance requirements and take action where they fall short. www.odpa.gg

What is an ‘adequacy’ decision
The Bailiwick is one of several jurisdictions that the European Commission (EC) currently recognises as offering an adequate standard of data protection. An adequacy decision from the EC is essential to the continued success of the Bailiwick’s economy as it allows EU organisations to easily transfer data to the islands of the Bailiwick.