Queen's Speech references new data protection law and digital charter

Legislative programme unveiled by Queen gives tech community plenty to chew over, despite being heavily focused on delivering Brexit

The Queen's Speech featured several references for the tech industry to chew over, including promises of a new UK data protection law and digital charter.

Today's address was heavily focused on Brexit, with several of the Conservatives' key manifesto pledges - including restoring fox hunting and expanding grammar schools - shorn from the agenda.

Technology was also a recurring theme in the speech, which comes after formal Brexit negotiations kicked off in Brussels this week.

"A new law will ensure that the United Kingdom retains its world-class regime protecting personal data, and proposals for a new digital charter will be brought forward to ensure that the United Kingdom is the safest place to be online", the Queen said.

Chris Gabriel, CDO at Techpulse Group, was among those whose eye this detail caught, tweeting that it "looks like a UK-specific GDPR is on the way". In a follow-up tweet, he added:

The Queen also said that her government will bring forward proposals to ensure that critical national infrastructure is protected to safeguard national security.

"A commission for countering extremism will be established to support the government in stamping out extremist ideology in all its forms, both across society and on the internet, so it is denied a safe space to spread," the monarch said.

Mark Lubbock, a technology partner at law firm Ashurt, argued that the proposals for a digital charter will not go down well with some tech firms.

"Following Theresa May's manifesto proposal to establish an international framework akin to those that exist in areas such as banking and trade, the charter will no doubt include proposals for closer scrutiny and regulation of certain activities online, chiefly of extremist material or content that is abusive or harmful to children," he said, according to Tech City News.

"Despite the government's stated commitment to 'a free and open internet', these proposals are likely to be of concern to both tech companies, which generally shy away from anything that resembles overarching regulation of the internet; and civil liberties groups, which will be concerned about the impact on free speech."

However, Sonia Blizzard, managing director of ISP Beaming, welcomed the emphasis on privacy and security.

"We welcome the government's commitment, articulated in today's Queen's Speech, to introduce a digital charter and make Britain a safer place to be online," she said. "Cybersecurity breaches cost businesses almost £30bn last year and small firms, in particular, are accelerating investment in security technologies to protect themselves and their customers from threats online."