Elected representatives and political parties

This page provides advice and guidance to elected representatives and their staff, political parties and campaigners.

Guidance for the use of personal data in political campaigning

Being able to communicate with and engage voters, including using digital services, is an essential part of democratic life. It is equally important to retain the trust and confidence of voters in using their data and the integrity of elections. This guidance highlights the importance of processing personal data in compliance with data protection law during political campaigning.

Members of Parliament 

In order to help MPs comply with their UK GDPR responsibilities alongside our Guide to UK GDPR, we have produced some frequently asked questions.

Helping your constituents with their casework matters is a vital part of many elected representatives’ roles. Often this involves handling large volumes of very sensitive information. We have produced guidance to help you to understand your responsibilities when using personal information as an elected representative to deal with constituency casework matters.

Paying the data protection fee

On 1 April 2019, the rules around paying the data protection fee changed. Members of the House of Lords, elected representatives and prospective representatives (including police and crime commissioners) are exempt from paying a fee, unless they process personal data for purposes other than the exercise of their functions as a Member of the House of Lords, an elected representative or as a prospective representative. For more information, read our guidance on the data protection fee.

Protecting personal information

Elected representatives have data protection responsibilities for the personal information they process in their work. They are data controllers under the UK GDPR. This means they are responsible for making sure all personal data handled by their office is done in a way that complies with the requirements of the UK GDPR.

For more information about the UK GDPR, including advice to help data controllers comply please see our comprehensive Guide to UK GDPR.