Peter A Clarke

The Privacy (Notifiable Data Breaches) Bill 2016 was introduced into the Senate last Wednesday, 8 February 2017.  It was read a first time and will be placed on the Notice Paper for second reading debate at a time of the Government’s choosing.  Given it is likely to pass through the Senate without too much difficulty that should not be too long in the waiting. Its earlier iteration, in 2013, was reviewed by a Senate Committee with no significant amendments proposed.  That is not to say it was not then and is not now a Bill that could be improved upon.  It could.  It is at best an adequate Bill. It remains unnecessarily complicated with too many exemptions.  It is certainly not best practice.  That said it should have a positive impact on at least some organisations being more mindful of their obligations in providing proper data security.  Given the poor level of compliance at the moment any improvement is to be welcomed.

All things being equal the Bill will be passed before the Winter recess.  That said the same could have been said about the 2013 version, only for it to lapse with the collapse of the Gillard Prime Ministership and the return of Kevin Rudd and the pre emptory prorogueing of Parliament.  In short, the only thing that is certain in politics is that nothing is certain.

The progress into the Senate is recorded in the Senate Journal, at item 43 (pages 868 – 9) which provides:

The Hansard is recorded here.