The Hon. Chithral Fernando, Attorney-at-Law

¶ 01 Thank you, Madam Deputy Chairperson. I thought my turn would be later.

¶ 02 It is later as well, but since the scheduled Opposition speakers are not in their seats now, you may proceed.

¶ 03 Thank you for the opportunity.

¶ 04 Today we debate amendments to the Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022. From the government side, only the first Minister and a few others spoke clearly on the amendments. Though we are accused, what we saw was many spoke at length about the 2022 Act but few addressed how these specific amendments help develop the economy, create a digital economy, interoperate with global digital platforms, and support data processing and controlling. Even the Sectoral Oversight Committee report, when read, does not make it clear how these amendments assist economic growth and digital integration.

¶ 05 Reading the Bill, the major change is to Section 20. However, the Hon. Minister skipped from section 17 to 26 without explaining section 20. Section 20 deals with removal of the mandatory Data Protection Officer in public authorities—“state institution” has been removed, and even “public authority” is removed in the Interpretation section. Hon. Deputy Minister, you are here; we are not opposed, but please explain the rationale. We are not against amendments that support development, but we must know the reasoning.

¶ 06 [Hon. Eranga Weeraratne responds: making the DPO optional so institutions can outsource the function while still complying.]

¶ 07 Hon. Deputy Minister, we know the 2022 Act was modelled on the EU GDPR. If so, has this approach—making DPOs optional for public bodies—been justified within that framework? You have not shown the rationale. Nevertheless, I accept your explanation in principle.

¶ 08 There are also changes to commencement timelines. No one from government has explained the necessity for those changes, or what benefits or pressures arise from them. Staff shortages were cited, but that cannot be the sole answer. When other Members spoke, they compared across governments rather than addressing specifics.

¶ 09 [Speech continues beyond the provided extract.]