Consultations: How we use your personal information
We, the Water Industry Commission for Scotland, are the controller of the personal information that we hold about you. This means that we are legally responsible for how we hold and use personal information about you. It also means that we are required to comply with data protection laws when holding and using your personal information. This includes providing you with the details contained within this statement of how we hold and use your personal information, who we may share it with and your rights in relation to your personal information.
We have appointed a Data Protection Officer (DPO), who ensures that we comply with data protection laws. If you have any questions about this statement or how we hold or use your personal information, please contact the DPO via email at: DPO@wics.scot.
- What personal information do we hold and use about you?
We hold and use the personal information that you provide to us when participating in our consultation. This may include:
- your name;
- your contact information, including your address, e-mail address and telephone number;
- online identifiers that are made available when you complete and submit the online consultation form;
- the personal opinions or experiences you share with us;
- your employer organisation or the organisation you represent, if relevant; and
- any other personal data you volunteer by way of evidence or example in your response to our consultation.
If you do not provide us with this personal information, we may not be able to acknowledge receipt of your response to our consultation or follow up in relation to any enquiries that you may have.
- Why do we hold and use this personal information about you?
We hold and use this personal information to:
- manage and undertake our consultation, including analysing the responses received and gathering information about the types of individuals and groups participating in our consultation;
- comply with our legal duties and obligations in terms of the Water Services etc. (Scotland) Act 2005 and associated legislation;
- contact you in relation to your response to our consultation and related matters, including acknowledging receipt of your response and responding to any enquiries; and
- publish the outcome of our consultation, including responses received (in anonymous format).
- What is our legal basis for holding and using your personal information?
Data protection laws require us to have a legal reason for holding and using your personal information. Our legal reason for holding and using your personal information is to undertake our consultation as part of exercising the official authority vested in us in terms of the Water Services etc. (Scotland) Act 2005 and associated legislation in the public interest. We also hold and use your personal information to comply with other legal and regulatory obligations that apply to us.
- Who do we share your personal information with?
We may share your personal information with organisations who may have a direct interest in the matters subject to consultation, for the purposes described in section 2 of this statement.
We may also share your personal information with our advisers, auditors, consultants, solicitors and IT service providers for the purposes described in section 2 of this statement.
- How long do we keep your personal information?
We keep the personal information that we hold and use about you for no longer than we need to meet any legal, accounting, reporting or regulatory requirements.
More information is contained in our data retention policy, which is available by contacting our DPO.
- Where is your personal information transferred to?
Our servers are located in the United Kingdom and the European Union and the information that we collect directly from you will be stored in these servers.
- What rights do you have in relation to your personal information that we hold and use?
It is important that the personal information that we hold about you is accurate and current. Please keep us informed of any changes. Under certain circumstances, the law gives you the right to request:
- a copy of your personal information and to check that we are holding and using it in accordance with legal requirements;
- correction of any incomplete or inaccurate personal information that we hold about you;
- deletion of your personal information where it is no longer necessary for us to continue to hold and use it;
- temporarily suspend the use of your personal information, for example, if you want us to check that it is correct or the reason for processing it or to stop us from using your personal information altogether if we have committed a breach of data protection laws;
You can also object to us holding and using your personal information on grounds relating to your particular situation, unless we have overriding and compelling legitimate grounds for holding and using your personal information in certain situations.
Please contact our DPO if you wish to make any of the above requests. When you make a request, we may ask you for specific information to help us confirm your identity for security reasons. You will not need to pay a fee when you make any of the above requests, but we may charge a reasonable fee or refuse to comply if your request for access is clearly unfounded or excessive.
- Feedback and complaints
We welcome your feedback on how we hold and use your personal information, and this can be sent to our DPO.
You have the right to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner, the UK regulator for data protection, about how we hold and use your personal information. The ICO’s contact details are as follows:
Telephone: 0303 123 1113
Website: https://ico.org.uk/concerns/
If you would like to receive this statement in alternative format, for example, audio, large print or braille, please contact us.
- Updates to this statement
We may update this statement at any time, and we will provide you with an updated version when required to do so by law.
Last updated: June 2024