Data protection: Your privacy rights

You have the right to be informed about how and why MOPAC will process your personal data. We will usually provide a summary of these reasons at the point at which you provide, or we collect your data. More detailed explanations are available in our privacy notice. 

The GDPR gives individuals the right to object to the processing of their personal data in certain circumstances. 

You can exercise this right to object to our use of your personal information when: 

• we have told you we use your personal information as part of our statutory and public function (also known as our public task), in the public interest 

• we have advised you we are using your personal information in support of our legitimate interests 

This is not an absolute right. If you object MOPAC will consider your objection, but may decide to continue to use your personal information if we can demonstrate compelling grounds to do so. We will inform you of our decision within one month. 

GDPR gives individuals the right to restrict the processing of their personal data in certain circumstances. 

You can ask us to restrict or stop using your personal data whilst we are considering an objection or rectification request, or if your data has been used unlawfully. You may also ask us to retain data required to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim. We will contact you within one month to explain our decision and provide details about how you can challenge the decision if you are dissatisfied with the outcome.

MOPAC ensures that your information is not kept for longer than necessary for the purposes for which it was collected by setting and adhering to retention periods. However, in some circumstances you can request your data is deleted before it reaches the end of the retention period. For example, if you consented to us processing your data but have since changed your mind you can withdraw your consent and request that your data is deleted. You may also ask us to delete your data if the information is no longer necessary for the purpose which we originally used it for, we were processing your personal information for our 'legitimate interests' and there is no longer a good reason for us to process your personal information or where you have objected to our processing your data and your objection has been upheld.  If we have passed the information on to others, we will take steps to tell them it has been deleted and request they also delete it. 

Where we do comply with a request, we may still be obliged to keep some information about you – for example the fact that you made, and we acted on, a deletion request.  

In some circumstances you have the right to get certain personal information from us as a digital file, so you can keep and use it yourself, and give it to other organisations if you choose to. Where this applies we will provide it to you in an electronic format that can be easily re-used, or you can ask us to pass it on to other organisations for you.

Data protection legislation protects you against decisions taken by machines that could have a significant impact on you. Automated decision making involves making a decision only by automated means without any human involvement. Profiling is a term used in data protection legislation to describe a form of automated processing of personal data to analyse or predict things about an individual. We are required to tell you if we are using automated decision making to make decisions that would have a legal, or similarly significant effect on you. We do not carry out automated decision making or profiling on individuals. 

Where we are processing your data under the lawful basis of consent, you have the right to change your mind and withdraw your consent. 

If you are unhappy with how we have used your personal information or if you are unhappy with our response to your individual rights request, you have the right to complain. You should first contact our Data Protection Officer (DPO) at [email protected].

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) also provide guidance on what to do if you don't get a response, or you're unhappy with it. 

You are also entitled to raise a concern with the Information Commissioner's Office, the UK's independent body set up to uphold information rights. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: 

Information Commissioner, 
Wycliffe House, 
Water Lane, 
Wilmslow, 
Cheshire,  
SK9 5AF  
Tel: 08456 30 60 60 or 01625 54 57 45.

You can also make a complaint via the ICO website: Make a complaint about how an organisation has used your personal information. 

See MOPAC's privacy notice.