Data Processing
Notice of fair processing
This authority is required by law to protect the public funds it administers. It may share information provided to it with other bodies responsible for auditing or administering public funds, in order to prevent and detect fraud.
The Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 repealed the Audit Commission Act 1998 on 1 April 2015 and established a new audit framework. Audit contracts that were already in existence on 31 March 2015 are to be dealt with by The Public Sector Audit Appointments Ltd until the financial year 2016/17. The Public Sector Audit Appointments Ltd is currently responsible for appointing auditors for local authorities.
The 2014 Act requires the National Audit Office to establish an audit Code of Practice and the Financial Reporting Council to monitor the quality of audits.
The Cabinet Office is now responsible for the National Fraud Initiative and data matching. Data matching involves comparing computer records held by one body against other computer records held by the same or another body to see how far they match. This is usually personal information. Computerised data matching allows potentially fraudulent claims and payments to be identified. Where a match is found it may indicate that there is an inconsistency which requires further investigation. No assumption can be made as to whether there is fraud, error or other explanation until an investigation is carried out.
The Cabinet Office may require us to provide data we hold for the purposes of matching exercises and we are required to assist them with this.
Schedule 9 of the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 gives The Cabinet Office the statutory authority to use data matching. We will conduct data matching in accordance with the fair processing principles of the General Data Protection Regulations 2018. Therefore unless an exemption within the General Data Protection Regulations 2018 is applicable, we will notify individuals when their information is subject to data matching.
Data matching by the Cabinet Office is subject to a Code of Practice.
For further information on the Cabinet Office’s legal powers and the reasons why it matches particular information, see below:
For further information on data matching at this authority contact the Data Protection Officer on 023 8068 8000 or email [email protected]