In my reply to Question No. 131 of 6 May 2021 referred to by the Deputy, I indicated that officials in my Department who process subject access request (SARs) from individuals completed data protection training delivered by external consultants to ensure that they are appropriately equipped to respond to requests in respect of the archive. I have asked my officials to make arrangements to provide the Deputy with a copy of the slides from the data protection training.
When responding to individuals who make subject access requests and other data subject requests, my Department seeks to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation. In order to assist the processing of subject access requests and to vindicate the rights of data subjects, my Department, in consultation with the Attorney General, developed Guidelines which set out the steps that must be taken in response to each subject access request. Each request must be considered on its own merits. I have asked my officials to make arrangements to provide the Deputy with a copy of the Guidelines.
My Department is cognisant of its obligations as a data controller and is seeking to ensure in all cases that it responds to data subject requests in accordance with its GDPR obligations.