Help save the UK’s economy and thousands of jobs
The EU Commission Vice President is doing her best to implement changes to EU regulation that will make it considerably harder, if not impossible, for the data industry to survive within Europe.
Now, we know what most of you are thinking; “Why should I care?”
It’s a valid question. We all hate those annoying sales calls that bother us 24-7, we can’t stand the idea that people can build up databases full of information about us that they can sell on to other people. Surely it’s a good thing if these regulations get brought in.
The truth is that they are not a good thing at all and below are the reasons why these changes shouldn’t happen:
It will send the data industry outside the EU
At the moment, data regulations in the UK and the rest of the EU are amongst the strictest in the world. With strong opt-in laws as well as services like the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) available, the UK is a very safe place for our data and we are protected by our laws.
Everyone in the UK can refuse to opt-in for their data to be collected and used in the first place. They also have the right to opt-out at any time, thereby stopping all incoming communication from any EU based company. You can unsubscribe at the time of the communication via the company that called you or by registering with the TPS. Companies in the UK are required by law to check their data against the TPS every 28 days and they are not allowed to call any number that’s on the TPS. All UK companies are legally bound to make sure your data is both secure and used responsibly.
But even when you have done this you still receive annoying emails, texts and calls, right?
That’s the problems and it happens to everyone. But what you may not know is that the companies calling you illegally are from outside the EU in almost all cases. So the EU laws are not applicable to them and its almost impossible to regulate them or stop them.
There are very few regulations in place in countries such as India and Africa and if a call centres based in those countries gets hold of your data they will use it however they see fit. This is an uncomfortable thought, especially when you consider that the fraud rates are drastically higher in these countries. Add to this the fact that often you don’t know who has called you and there is no sure way of opting out of receiving future calls from these people.
If the proposed regulations make it through the EU, it will be close to impossible to work within Europe in the data or call centre industry. In the past when regulations have been tightened in the EU history shows us that many companies (normally the less scrupulous ones) move there call centres outside the EU to places like India where they can enjoy a regulation free environment and a place where the EU rules just can’t be enforced. If these new laws get passed then it’s highly likely that you will receive more calls from call centres in unregulated territories and there will be nothing you can do to stop them.
It is going to massively impact the UK economy
Like it or loathe it, data is a large part of most industries in the UK.
Call centres are one of the largest sources of employment in the UK and they need data to survive. Anyone in advertising or marketing rely on data to create focused campaigns that customers will find interesting. All this activity produces income for the UK and keeps people in jobs. These people pay TAX and the UK ‘chugs’ along.
In most cases people benefit from marketing activity in the UK, let me give you a couple of example as to how the marketing industry might have helped you and our economy recently. PPI; everyone had a call, SMS or even an email relating to a PPI claim and at the time I bet you were a little annoyed. But the good people of the UK benefit from this PPI marketing and went on receive over £16,000,000,000 (sixteen billion pounds) in refunds form the naughty banks that miss sold PPI in the first place! Marketing companies made this happened, let’s face it the banks were never going to give it back without a fight.
That money has been showed to have boosted the UK economy massively and in part is the reason the UK is now out of recession. I imagine the PPI refunds have had a positive effect on a lot of individuals and families that you know.
This windfall would never have happened if the new EU laws were in place.
Other small things like the ‘product recommendation’ features on AMAZON might be lost in their current form as well. This really will affect everything.
So if the data industry crumbles what happens to the many businesses and call centres in the EU that are involved with it? People lose their jobs, small companies go bankrupt and the UK economy takes yet another hit. Jobs will move to the new unregulated call centres in India and other places. If you think about it, no matter what industry you are in, data touches you in some way and these changes will affect you as well.
Basically these changes are going to do little more than raise the unemployment rate in the UK and the rest of Europe, and drive even more jobs outside the UK and the EU.
These changes simply haven’t been thought through. It’s just another example of the EU sticking its nose in to the UK and fixing something that isn’t broken
Unless it’s the EU’s goal is to weaken the UK and EU’s economies and strengthen third world economies like India and Africa, Vivian Reding ( the woman responsible for promoting theses proposal in the EU) and the rest of the European Commission really haven’t thought these changes through.
There has been no care or consideration taken in regards the possible implications of the collapse of the data industry. Neither have they considered all the good it does for us all. The EU are leading us blindly into yet more economic trouble when we still haven’t fully recovered from our last period of hardship.
What should really concern you is that they haven’t thought how these changes effect hard working normal people more so than big companies. Large corporations will be able to afford the coming changes and once more the only people who will suffer are the everyday people who aren’t big enough to fight back.
What can you do?
Below is a link to an official HM Government petition that will help combat these proposed changes. Click on the below button now and sign up to help save our jobs and the UK economy. Don’t leave this to someone else, do it now and tell your frends.