THE HS2 high-speed rail company had the power to gather private data on people opposed to the controversial scheme, according to official documents.
It has been forced to withdraw a document that reportedly stated it could gather sensitive information about the opponents’ sexual orientation, mental health and political views.
READ MORE: Beyond Brexit: Hospitals risk losing EU staff lifeline after Brexit
HS2, which is a non-departmental government body, withdrew its publicly available privacy notice after the Sunday Express found it contained provisions that would allow it to access and “process personal data”.
The data could include details of individuals’ sexual orientation, trade union affiliation, criminal record, and physical and mental health, according to the newspaper.
The firm said it would ensure no “inappropriate” information was being held.
Privacy notices are the most common way organisations can be transparent with individuals about how their personal data will be used, according to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
HS2’s notice said data could be collected on staff and suppliers but also complainants and litigants, including those who may be objecting to the £55.7 billion railway or claiming compensation.
READ MORE: Beyond Brexit: Hospitals risk losing EU staff lifeline after Brexit
It has now withdrawn its privacy notice from the Government’s website.
An HS2 spokesman said: “We have withdrawn the privacy notice with immediate effect. It does not reflect how we handle information.
“We will carry out an audit on data to ensure we do not hold anything inappropriate. At no point has HS2 Ltd used any information held for financial gain.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here