WITH THE DEADLINE fast approaching for Barbados to comply with the European Union’s (EU) newest data protection legislation, a lawyer and international trade advisor is raising concern that the regulation has the power to destroy local businesses.
However, Minister of International Business, Donville Inniss, has pushed back, emphasising that Barbados was “still a sovereign state” and that if necessary, the country would engage the EU on the issue.
The legislation in question was the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which attorney Chad Blackman said he strongly believed could erase all of the island’s post-Independence gains.
The GDPR replaces the Data Protection Directive 95/46 and according to the EU, “is designed to protect all EU citizens from privacy and data breaches”.
It dictates that the personal information of EU citizens, such as email addresses, passports, medical reports and identification cards, be stored under certain conditions.
Failure by people or businesses to comply by the deadline could result in them receiving a maximum fine of either four per cent of their annual global turnover, or $20 million euros, whichever was greater.
The lesser penalty could result in people or businesses being fined two per cent of their annual global turnover, or $10 million euros, whichever was greater. (RB)
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