New NIDS policy taking shape - Committee meets with Opposition
Published:Thursday | January 9, 2020 | 12:53 AM
Opposition members met with representatives of the National Identification System (NIDS) Review Policy Committee to comb through details of the controversial NIDS policy with the aim of finding consensus before it is turned over to Cabinet.
Led by Dr Peter Phillips, Julian Robinson, shadow minister for science and technology, among others, the Opposition received information pertinent to the creation of the new policy. The agenda included focus on proposed guiding principles, key strategies, and the institutional and legislative framework.
Court ruling
The NIDS Policy Review Committee (PRC) is made up of various ministries, departments, and agencies and was established to review and revise the NIDS policy after the Constitutional Court ruling in April 2019 after the Opposition raised concerns that various sections of the act violated citizens’ rights.
The court declared the entire law null and void, setting the table for a review by the Holness administration.
Following Tuesday’s session, Holness took to Twitter and reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to press ahead with the reformulation of the legislation.
“This Government takes protection and privacy of personal data very seriously. Regardless of the many challenges, we are determined and committed to move Jamaica into the modern era where your privacy is a top priority,” he said.
Holness told Parliament in November last year that the Government would not abandon the identification aspect of the NIDS. He said at the time that the Government’s target was to issue new drafting instructions with strengthened oversight and security provisions by January 2020, with the aim of tabling a new bill by the end of this financial year in March.
“We have always pointed out that this programme was much more than identification. This programme was always about modernising Jamaica’s information and communications technology infrastructure to support the effective and efficient delivery of government services,” Holness said then.