The Privacy
Bill began its second reading before parliament on Tuesday 18 June. The
proposed legislation is set to reshape the privacy landscape and bring
New Zealand in line with global trends.
A few of the key points already raised in the House:
The
Select Committee has raised the threshold for when an agency must
notify the commissioner of a breach in an attempt to exclude trivial
notifications while ensuring effective compliance. Notification would
now be mandatory where it is reasonable to believe the breach has caused
or is likely to cause serious harm.
The
Committee has clarified the application of the Bill to overseas
agencies. This comes in response to two competing concerns: on the one
hand, the importance that key overseas actors are compliant, and on the
other hand the threat of legislative overreach. The committee attempts
to resolve that tension by stating that application will be in respect
of “actions taken and information collected…in the course of carrying on
business in New Zealand".
Finally,
the committee has broadened the definition of “news activity", so that
the proposed exemption also applies to journalism in less traditional
forms (not least, internet publications), as well as to Television New
Zealand and Radio New Zealand, provided those activities are overseen by
a regulatory body.
While
the reading is still underway, early signs demonstrate strong
cross-party support for these amendments. The debate is scheduled to
recommence tonight.
We
are closely following the developments of the Privacy Bill. If you have
any questions about these proposed amendments, please get in touch with
the authors or your usual Bell Gully advisor.
This publication is necessarily brief and general in nature. You should seek professional advice before taking any action in relation to the matters dealt with in this publication.
