Adare warns of 'poorer data quality' if electoral data selling banned
Tim Sheahan, printweek.com, 22 July 2008
Proposals to outlaw the sale of electoral data by councils will "lead to a poorer quality of data", according to Adare.
The proposals, which were recommended in the independent Data Sharing Review Report commissioned by the Ministry of Justice, condemned the selling of the electoral role as an "unsatisfactory way to treat personal information".
However, Andrew Woodger, data services director at Adare, hit back at the proposals warning they will lead to a poorer quality of data.
He said: "The likelihood is if the role is no longer available, a larger number of companies will be moved to collect their data through third parties.
"The electoral role serves some venerable purposes and helps ensure that businesses target marketing for products such as financial services and alcohol at people over the age of 18."
Woodger added that unlike the electoral role, third-party data is not as actively managed: "There will be a stronger reliance on less traceable data."
According to the Adare data services director, there are 32-33m people currently on the electoral role.
He said: "The irony is more than 60% of people choose to make their information available. Your information belongs to you."
