APPENDIX H
Response from the General Register Office to the
Committee Specialist dated 3 November 2004
Proposal for the Regulatory Reform (Registration
of Births and Deaths) (England and Wales) Order 2004: response
to request for information
Q69. Please indicate whether funding to registration
authorities will be ring-fenced?
Current government policy is to reduce the number
of ring-fenced grants made to local authorities and the Registrar
General has not proposed that the funding should be ring-fenced.
Q70. Please indicate how inclusion in the
Best Value and Comprehensive Performance Assessments inspection
regimes might affect the regularity with which registration services
would be reviewed.
A risk based approach is taken to decide the frequency
and scope of audit and inspection work that is undertaken locally.
Work programmes take account of both the local and national risks
that impact on the services provided by the local authority and
the local authority's own improvement planning that follows on
from CPA.
Q71. Please indicate who would have responsibility
for inspection over remote entries to the Register.
Responsibility will lie with the Registrar General.
The IT system and software application developed to receive remote
registrations will contain in-built validation checks (e.g. spelling
of names and places). Additionally, routine sample checking will
be undertaken by GRO staff. In accordance with Government requirements,
arrangements will be in place for the provision of remote services
by the Registrar General to be externally audited.
Q72. Please indicate what evidence exists
to support the view that offering postal registrations will reduce
the number of remote registrations
An assessment of offering postal registrations was
carried out and the following is an extract from the Regulatory
Impact Assessment:
3.5.8 Option 3 - In addition to on-line
and telephone registration, allow postal registration.
3.5.9 Citizens could be given an additional choice
of ways to register by providing registration by post. It could
be done either as an alternative, or in addition to electronic
and telephone registration. On the surface the option of a postal
system would be relatively easy to implement though it would perpetuate
a paper based system. Maintenance of the accuracy and integrity
of the records of births and deaths must form a cornerstone of
any reform. Transferring data from paper to computer carries an
additional element of risk in this respect. Moreover, there is
a danger that instances of postal registrations being rejected
would be high unless the standard of acceptable information is
lowered.
3.5.10 It would not be expensive to facilitate
registration by post however it is unlikely that additional 'remote'
registrations would take place if was offered. Therefore there
are no additional costs or income effects over and above those
discussed above at 3.5.4.
The option to offer postal registration was rejected
in early stages of policy development because of relative costs
of implementation and processing, issues with data quality and
logistics.
Q73. Please indicate why the GRO believes
the accuracy and integrity of records would be more likely to
be compromised in transferring information from paper to the Register
as opposed to from a telephone or on-line registration.
Transcribing information from paper-based forms when
the informant is not present can be subject to data entry errors.
In the on-line or telephone based scenario, the informant is present
and will be offered the opportunity to double check, confirm and
validate the information given. Moreover, on-line registration
can be supported by drop down pick-lists, field validation and
other techniques such as blocking progress to next screen until
valid data input is complete. Transcription errors on data entry
from paper-based forms can be minimised by double-entry (key validation)
processes, but this will effectively double the cost of such data
entry.
Q74. The RIA does not identify any options
for the 'records' section objectives of:
a. Modernising the system for capturing and
holding civil registration information relating to births and
deaths;
b. Modernising the system for updating civil
registrations information relating to births and deaths; and
c. Putting in place arrangements for archiving
existing paper birth and death records held locally.
Please therefore indicate what options have been
considered, which are the preferred courses of action and what
are the related costs and benefits.
The project Outline Business Case has undertaken
a full options appraisal for the proposed IT solution. This looked
at a combination of various development and delivery options including
using the in-house ONS IT development capability;
procuring a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS)
registration package;
using central government services such as the
secure data centre and hosting services, common transaction engine
and common citizen authentication services;
using an out-sourced system integrator approach
for a total turn-key solution
using a specialised data capture organisation
and off-shore capability where appropriate for the digitisation
of modern records; and
using the private or voluntary or not-for-profit
sectors for the digitisation of historic records.
The preferred course of action is to procure external
specialist data capture expertise via the OJEU procurement process
for both the modern and historical records. This procurement exercise
is underway and we currently have 11 companies long-listed (including
the not-for-profit sector) who are responding to our specification.
We expect to short-list in January with a view to letting the
contract in April 05.
We are currently evaluating seven COTS registration
packages against our functional and technical specification to
determine the best fit.
The Outline Business Case gives full cost/benefit
analysis and this will be updated in the Full Business case once
the supplier costs are known following the tendering process.
Q75. Please provide evidence supporting the
estimate of £5 million for the development of the national
database, breaking the costs down between:
— Database design and development
— Hardware
— Networking and remote access
— On-going maintenance
— Systems upgrades
— Re-archiving of records onto the latest
formats
— Record-checking (querying) facility
for private sector and other government departments
— Security systems to prevent unauthorised
access or manipulation to records
— Contingency arrangements
Financial contingency for the project is held at
corporate level.
The following tables are from work which was undertaken
to cost the exercise from an in-house development perspective.
Q76. Please indicate how was the estimate
of £20m for the conversion of the records of the existing
population determined.
To develop and validate the budgetary estimates for
data capture two specialist data capture suppliers were asked
to view the existing records and to produce some budgetary estimates.
The results are 'commercial in confidence' and cannot be divulged
at this stage. However the figures were of a similar size and
have led us to believe that £20m should suffice to data capture
the existing modern and historic records to the required level.
Q77. Please indicate how much you estimate
the ICT infrastructure, accommodation, management, training and
staffing will cost for i) the contact centre and ii) for the on-line
processing centre?
The General Register Office currently operates an
'in house' contact centre for certificate applications and related
public enquiries between 8.00am and 8.00pm Monday to Friday and
between 9.00am and 4.00pm on Saturday. The existing contact centre
will be upgraded to support the introduction of remote registration.
Additional staff will also be recruited and trained. The estimated
set-up costs are as follows:
Upgraded telephone technology : £250k
Accommodation and environmental upgrade : £200k
Additional staffing costs : £200k
Other costs, including training : £100k
Additional costs for on-line processing have been
included in those identified above or in Q75.
Q78. Please indicate what estimates have been
made of take-up rates for telephone and on-line registrations
over the next 10 years and how these might affect contact and
on-line processing centre costs.
Take up estimates for public on-line and telephone
registrations are shown below. The table assumes that public on-line
and telephone registration of deaths is not introduced until the
recommendations of the Shipman Inquiry and Review of Death Certification
are implemented (i.e. in year 4).
Contact Centre and central processing costs will
increase proportionately with the take up of on-line and telephone
registrations. Conversely the cost to local government of providing
face to face services will reduce as parents of newly born children
and the bereaved choose to provide information remotely.
The following table of take-up rates were used for
the business case appraisal and sensitivity analysis was carried
out around high, medium and low take-up rates for call centre,
web based and face-to-face (F2F) registrations.
| | Year 1
| Year 2 | Year 3
| Year 4 | Year 5
| Year 6 | Year 7
| Year 8 | Year 9
| Year 10 |
| TOTAL BIRTHS | 600,000
| 613,444 | 626,889
| 640,333 | 653,778
| 667,222 | 680,667
| 694,111 | 707,556
| 721,000 |
| % Web | 8% |
14% | 17%
| 21% | 25%
| 28% | 32%
| 35% | 38%
| 37% |
| % telephone | 0%
| 5% | 9%
| 13% | 16%
| 19% | 21%
| 23% | 24%
| 25% |
| % F2F | 92% |
81% | 74%
| 66% | 59%
| 53% | 47%
| 42% | 38%
| 38% |
| TOTAL DEATHS |
| |
| 540,000 | 539,167
| 538,333 | 537,500
| 536,667 | 535,972
| 535,000 |
| % Web |
| |
| 5% | 8%
| 12% | 15%
| 17% | 21%
| 24% |
| % telephone |
| |
| 3% | 5%
| 7% | 9%
| 11% | 13%
| 14% |
| % F2F |
| |
| 92% | 87%
| 81% | 76%
| 72% | 66%
| 62% |
Q79. How much will the creation of 'life-records'
cost in terms of additional staff time?
Life-records' will be created in two ways. The first
way is when new events are registered. When the details of the
person being registered for either a marriage notice, a marriage
registration or a death registration are input into the system,
the system will automatically look for existing events on the
database for a person with matching details. These will be displayed
and the informant asked to confirm that the existing event is
for the same person. Where this route is used additional staff
time will be minimal.
The second way is when the existing modern paper
records are data captured and added to the central database. As
they are loaded the system will search for any records already
on the database where the subject details match. Provided there
is a full unique match then the records will be linked as a 'life-record'.
To help in this process we will use existing files which indicate
matched birth and death records - for example the database we
already hold for matched deaths to births where the person is
under 18 at the time of death. Where there a multiple matches
or near matches the details will be listed for clerical action.
The process of automatic matching and linking will not require
any additional staff time. ONS will have to take a decision on
how to handle the multiple/near matches listed for clerical action.
The decision will depend on the volume listed for action. Providing
the volumes are relatively small ONS will use existing resources
in the department which deals with individual case work and queries.
Estimates of £40K over a one year period should allow for
at least 10,000 queries to be sorted out.
Q80. Please indicate how many queries (identity
searches) the GRO estimates the database will be asked to perform
each day and what will be its maximum capability. How does this
compare to the number of query requests received on similar systems?
It is difficult to estimate the number of identity
searches. The table below shows the demand for birth and death
certificates in 2002/03 that is as reliable an indicator as is
available. It is acknowledged that the volume of accesses is likely
to be higher.
GRO Local Registration Service
Demand for certificates: 580,000 4,000,000
Daily (based on 5 days a week) 2,300 16,000
In discussions with Other Government Departments
we have estimated potential numbers of transactions per year.
The cost appraisal is based on a 10% take-up of services in Year
1 rising to a 75% take-up of services by FY 2010/2011.
This gives a potential of up to a further 40,000
identity searches per day by year 2011.
The number of new registrations for births and deaths
is fairly stable and predictable and gives an average of 22,000
new events to be registered on a weekly basis. In addition the
current demand for birth and death certificates is in the order
of 90,000 per week counting those issued centrally by GRO as well
as locally by the Local Registration Service. Figures from one
of the major on-line credit referencing agencies in the UK shows
they currently deal with over 1 million on-line requests for personal
data checks a week. We are therefore confident that the technology
we are proposing is well established and scaleable.
Q81. Please indicate how the fees for services,
prescribed in Schedule 5 of the proposed Order have been costed.
Are fees intended to cover the cost of the database development
and on-going maintenance and, if so, when do you expect to break
even?
Paragraph 11.2.18 of the consultation document 'Civil
Registration -Delivering Vital Change' explains the context in
which we had estimated the proposed charges listed in Schedule
5 of the draft Regulatory Reform Order.
Fees for services have been estimated so as to recover
all the costs of providing the services including the cost of
financing capital expenditure. The cost of capital expenditure
has been recovered over the estimated life of the asset.
This is broadly similar to the existing regime set
out in the Public Receipts and Expenditure Act 1968 where charges
have to be reviewed taking into account the costs of providing
the service.
Q82. Please provide evidence supporting the
calculation of the likely reduction to income and costs in the
registration service of £8 million and £23 million respectively.
The Government acknowledges that over time local
authority costs and income will reduce in the provision of civil
registration services.
Costs will reduce because of more efficient on-line
processes, for example Registration Officers will no longer be
required to prepare and submit the quarterly paper copies. With
the transfer of Registration Officers to Local Authority employee
status there will be less restrictive staffing arrangements for
the provision of Registration services allowing Local Authorities
to develop pools of multi-skilled staff and to integrate registration
services into one-stop-shop facilities.
Income will decline with the loss of local certificate
sales and the transfer of some registrations to the remote services
such as telephone and internet. However there will be opportunities
to develop income generating activities in other areas such as
- New services e.g. baby naming, civil funerals
- OGD initiatives e.g. citizenship and partnership
ceremonies
We have calculated a figure of £8m income loss
per annum based on the loss of local authority chargeable certificates
sales that result from implementation of the proposals. This calculation
is robust as certificate prices are fixed and we have precise
information on local authority sales. We have used some assumptions
in the cost savings that are based on the current local registration
scheme which describes the time spent on all registration activities
and predict a net cost saving of between £16m and £23m
p.a.
In respect of local government revenue relating
to the registration of births and deaths, the baseline of £16.1m
per annum comprises the following -
Superintendent Registrar certificates £6.6m
Registrar of births and deaths certificates £8.2m
Consolidated payment £1.3m.
It is assumed that after five years, registrars of
births and deaths will no longer be issuing certificates reducing
revenue by £8.2m.
In respect of local government costs relating
to the same services, the baseline total is £37.0m (including
a 50% overhead) based on the formulae used to calculate local
registration scheme assessments. A saving of £19.5m (including
overheads) assumes a 50% reduction in the amount of time needed
to complete the registration of a birth or death (in the absence
of a paper register), the removal of declarations of births and
deaths and take-up figures for remote registration of 41% (births)
and 13% (deaths) (see the answer to Q78).
Given the uncertainty of these assumptions, it is
thought to be prudent to allow a 20% discrepancy in either direction.
This gives a spread of between £16.0m and £23.0m (including
overheads).
Q83. By how much do you estimate benefit fraud
will reduce as a result of imposing restricted access to birth
and death records?
There are no specific estimates on the potential
reduction in benefit fraud. GRO believes that the proposals to
digitise and link modern records, notify events electronically
to some Government Departments and allow verification checking
against registration records will have an overall positive effect
on reducing the level of fraud, particularly identity fraud, committed
against Government Departments and Private Sector institutions.
These measures will also help deter increases in fraudulent activity.
Q84. Does the GRO expect a wider range of
businesses to begin checking registration records once electronic
searches are available? If so, what are the projections? How
much revenue do you expect to raise from these and will any of
this be re-distributed to registration authorities?
GRO is currently working with representative bodies
from the financial and direct marketing sectors to discuss the
potential future demand to access the records. In the business
case we have included a conservative estimate that business use
remains at present levels. Should additional income be forthcoming
it would enable us to reduce charges to other users in line with
the requirements of the Public Receipts and Expenditure Act 1968.
Q85. Do you foresee a significant number of
claims under employment legislation by Registrars once they are
local authority employees? Will this legislative protection have
any other effects on the way registrars conduct their work, for
example, reduced weekend or day-time office hours?
The Registrar General has been monitoring preparations
within local authorities for staff transfer. To date there have
been no formal indications of any unwillingness within local government
to transfer Registrars to local authority employment. Indeed there
is every indication that this will be a seamless process.
The Registrar General is not aware of any reason
why there should be a significant number of claims by Registrars
under employment legislation. Nor is he aware of any reason why
there should be effects on the way registrars conduct their work.
Q86. Do you believe a greater number of false
applications will be made by identity fraudsters who may perceive
the changes in provisions as a relaxation of the law?
No, it is not believed that the changes will lead
to a greater number of false applications by identity fraudsters,
but rather to a reduction in fraud. The underlining aim of the
provisions is to help reduce fraud by better use and control of
registration information. Discussions with the main users of registration
information indicate that the provisions will help with the reduction
in fraud particularly by maximising the use of automatic notification
from the NHS, data sharing, the linking of birth and death events
and list cleaning.
Q87. What indications have the private sector
given as to whether they will pass on the costs of identity checks
to the consumer in the form of higher insurance premiums, less
favourable credit terms, etc?
GRO have received no specific indications from the
private sector that they will pass on the costs to the consumer.
Paragraphs 21.8.31 to 21.8.34 of the Explanatory Document address
the concerns expressed by a number of organisations of the cost
of accessing individual records on the central database. On balance,
the Government feels that the charge is justifiable and balanced
by the savings that will be made in other areas. However, further
consideration is being given to the issue of charging for bulk
users in consultation with some key stakeholders.
Q88. If additional statistical information
given is false, this may impact on public policy decisions. Please
indicate how its accuracy will be verified.
The quality of the statistical information collected
at registration needs to be high because it is used to calculate
birth and death rates and population estimates for planning, monitoring
and resource allocation purposes. ONS has a number of approaches
to ensure data quality. The approach taken here will be similar
to that taken with censuses and surveys. The recording of new
items of statistical information, for example establishment size
or ethnicity, will be introduced initially on a pilot basis.
This will ensure that the form of question used is acceptable
and provides meaningful information. New items of statistical
information will only be collected if piloting is successful.
In designing questions for new data items, use will
be made of already existing questions from surveys and/or the
Census of Population where appropriate. These will already have
gone through a rigorous testing process. Such questions will,
however, still be piloted for collection during the registration
of births and deaths. For example, we will wish to test the quality
of information received when different modes of collection [face-to-face,
telephone, internet] are used. Additionally, for some items of
information collected, it is possible to do some cross-validation
with other items of information recorded. For postcode, we plan
automated checking with postcode lists. This will include the
facility to actively override if a postcode is new or not on a
list rather than just accepting a postcode without validation.
Q89. What account has been taken of obligations
arising from membership of the European Union in drawing up the
proposed RRO?
GRO maintains close contact with other member states
through the auspices of the Commission Internationale D'Etat Civil
(CIEC) and has taken full account of the European dimension in
developing our proposals.
Q90. What account was taken of the British
Humanist Association's concerns on competition from local authorities
in relation to secular baby-naming ceremonies?
It is intended that a second Order on civil registration
is presented to Parliament in 2005. This second Order will relate
primarily to marriage in England and Wales but will include proposals
in respect of celebratory services such as baby-naming ceremonies.
Consideration will therefore be given in drafting the second
Order to responses, including that of the British Humanist Association,
on proposals in respect of celebratory services.
Q91. What account was taken of the concerns
about restricted information in death certificates raised on behalf
of people brought up separately from their natural family who
were trying to find out about their family medical history from
death records?
This issue of accessing death information to trace
medical history was raised by a number of different groups of
respondents, amongst them: adopted people, people who had been
in care and had been separated from their families and genealogists.
The Government took into account the concerns of
all these groups. It acknowledges the growing interest in researching
genetic and medical history and is of the view that the proposed
access framework makes this possible. As indicated in the reply
to Q14 from your previous letter, the Government has included
adopted people and Adoptions Support Agencies in the list of those
entitled to access the restricted information including cause
of death. This would allow them to find out about the medical
history of their birth relatives. People who had been taken into
care and genealogists would be able to access cause of death information
for family members as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 10. They would
be able to access cause of death information for other relatives
with consent.
Q92. What was the GRO's response to the concerns
raised by CIFAS and the REaD Group on list cleaning?
The GRO acknowledges the validity of the points raised
by CIFAS and other respondents about the fraudulent use of death
information. Draft provisions have been included in the Order
to allow the Registrar General to provide list cleaning facilities.
Such facilities could be used to remove the names of the dead
from mailing lists, financial and pensions databases and therefore
prevent their abuse. The service would also protect relatives
of the deceased from undue distress.
The creation of links between birth and death registrations
for an individual would also have a positive effect in the fight
against fraud. In particular, it would make it possible to identify,
in a large number of cases, when the birth record of someone who
has died is being used for fraudulent purposes. The draft Order
would allow banks and financial institutions to access records
with the consent of the individual, or in the case of the deceased,
their next of kin or representative.
The response from CIFAS went further by suggesting
that all deaths information should be shared with organisations
such as themselves. In developing the provisions for accessing
registration information, the Government's aim was to balance
the public interest in registration records with the rights of
those named in the records and their families to privacy. It also
sought to protect the security and integrity of registration records.
The Government is of the view that it has achieved that in the
draft Order. The provisions would help to reduce fraud, remove
the potential for the impersonation of the dead and protect individuals
from distress.
GRO is working with representatives from the financial
and direct marketing sectors to discuss list cleaning and other
issues relating to access.
There was no response from the REaD Group to the
consultation document "Civil Registration: Delivering Vital
Change".
Q93. What account was taken of the appeal
from the Association of Family History Societies of Wales for
'Address' to be included on the details supplied?
A large number of respondents, including the Association
of Family History Societies of Wales, argued that both occupations
and addresses should be included in the details supplied. Their
argument is that these pieces of information were necessary for
identification purposes.
The Government took account of the arguments made.
It accepted that occupation was no longer a sensitive issue and
that it was important for genealogical research, particularly
for records relating to people born in some regions or in the
first half of the 20th century. It therefore decided that occupation
should not be restricted.
The Government, on the other hand, did not think
it was proportionate, justifiable or desirable to make address
information freely available. To release the information would
not provide the necessary protection to those named in the records
or maintain their existing rights or freedoms. However, the reduction
of the period during which restrictions would apply to 75 years
for births and 25 years for deaths would increase the number of
records available and would mitigate some of the concerns expressed
by the Association and other respondents. Thus, the balance between
privacy and openness is maintained.
Q94. Can the GRO clarify how many responses
were received to the consultation; and how many responses were
received to each of the points on which are reported in Appendix
2 to the Regulatory Impact Assessment?
There were 3383 responses to the consultation document
"Civil Registration: Delivering Vital Change."
A table showing the numbers of responses and type
of respondent to the 28 questions asked in the 1999 consultation
document "Registration: Modernising a Vital Service"
is attached as Appendix A to this group of questions.
Q95. Please indicate what estimates the GRO
has made of the rate at which it would be possible to establish
through-life records for persons in England and Wales.
It is necessary to first distinguish the following
categories of records:
a) existing records entered on the national database
as part of the digitisation project,
b) new registrations linked to records we already
hold, and
c) new registrations linked to future events.
a) Records in this group are likely to be linking
using an automated matching process. To do anything else would
be very resource intensive and financially prohibitive. The expectations
for the level of record linkage that it will be possible to do
are low. A broad and optimistic estimate is that it might be possible
to link about 20% of these records. The GRO are looking at ways
to improve the matching rate. For example, the rate for matching
recent deaths with birth records is likely to be higher and it
may be possible to also look at child deaths.
b) Once the existing registration records have been
digitised, the rate for linking new registrations with existing
records is expected to be higher. It should be born in mind that
for the scope of this Order, it would be death records initially
that would be linked to existing birth records. A broad estimate
is that, if the birth records are on the national database, it
would be possible to link 70-80% of death records to birth records.
c) Linking new birth records registered under the
proposed system to future records is expected to take many years.
The matching rate is expected to be good for records that are
held on the database.
Q96. Please indicate whether any disadvantages
in terms of ease of access to public or commercial services might
arise for those persons who after a period of 10 years were not
the subject of through-life records within the register, whether
by virtue of having been born in another jurisdiction or for any
other reason, and if not, why not.
As highlighted in the question and in paragraph 21.5.25
of the Explanatory Document, it is accepted that not everyone
will be the subject of a through life records in the future for
various reasons. The main Government users of registration records
also accept this. There will be no disadvantages to those people
in terms of ease of access to public or commercial services. To
treat individuals who do not have through life records differently
would be unfair, discriminatory and fail to meet the tests of
the Regulatory Reform Act 2001.
The individual records of vital events, whether registered
in England or Wales or elsewhere would continue to act the basis
for obtaining services and benefits. Through life records would
provide a value-added service and help to further reduce fraud,
particularly by preventing the unauthorised use of the records
of the deceased.
Two of the main advantages of moving to a computerised
system are that it improves access to registration records and
makes it possible to automatically notify organisations and bodies
that events have taken place. Both of these advantages facilitate
access to service or benefits. For example, automatic notification
to Inland Revenue of all births will allow quicker access to child-related
benefits. People who do not have through life records would, nevertheless,
benefit from these aspects of the system.
Q97. Please explain the practical operation
of the current arrangements for access by members of the public
to information held in registration records and describe how the
move to the proposed new system would deliver an overall improvement
to the accessibility and availability of registration records.
Currently registration information may only be issued
in the form of a birth or death certificate. Members of the public
wishing to buy a certificate must provide sufficient information
for the superintendent registrar having custody of the original
register, or the Registrar General, to identify the record. Alternatively,
the public may search the indexes to the national records held
at the General Register Office and apply for a certificate quoting
details from the index. No public access is permitted to the
original records (other than the registers currently in use for
the registering of births and deaths)
Once registration information becomes available on
the central database, the public will be able to access information
electronically via the internet. For births that took place over
75 years previously, and deaths that occurred more than 25 years
ago, the public will have access to the full record. For entries
made more recently the public will not be permitted to access
information about address and cause of death. Additionally, it
is proposed that the public should also be permitted to access
the original records (or a copy thereof ) held by the local authority
on the same basis.
Q98. Please indicate the considerations which
led to the setting of the proposed time restrictions on the full
public availability of registration records in Schedule 9.
A number of factors were taken into consideration
when setting the proposed time restrictions, namely: views from
respondents to the consultation exercise, experience in other
UK jurisdictions, practical considerations and the needs of some
of the main users of registration information.
A large proportion of respondents was against restricting
access to registration records for 100 years. They felt this was
too long and prevented them from carrying out genealogical research.
In addition, many of these respondents argued that the access
model should be based on the age of the records rather than the
age of the person for practical reasons. Many respondents argued
that the access model should be in line with that used in Scotland
where there were different periods of restriction for different
types of records.
Discussions with users of registration information
indicated that records relating to people born from approximately
1935 onwards were the most frequently used or where fraud was
most likely to occur.
The Government also considered the views of a substantial
number of respondents who argued that the time period during which
the restrictions would apply should be increased to at least 110
years and preferably more.
The outcome of the Government's considerations was
to modify the access framework described in the consultation document
"Civil Registration: Delivering Vital Change" and to
move to the proposed time restrictions set out in Schedule 9.
In this model information in birth records is restricted for 75
years and in death records for 25 years. It is the Government's
view that this model balances the needs of those named in the
records and those of users of the information and meets the tests
in the Regulatory Reform Act 2001.
Q99. Please indicate what representations
may have been made to the GRO in the period when this proposal
was being developed concerning the desirability of restricting
the availability of cause of death information and what account
was taken of them in formulating the proposal.
Representations asking for the availability of cause
of death information to be restricted have been made to GRO for
many years. From time to time members of the public write in to
GRO concerned that the cause of death of their relatives is shown
on death certificates or that this is freely available to anyone
purchasing a death certificate.
More recently, the most popular response to the 1999
consultation document "Registration: Modernising a Vital
Service" on how to strike the balance between an individual's
privacy and the public interest in registration records was to
restrict access to recent records. Cause of death, addresses and
occupations were considered to be the most sensitive items of
information in registration records and those that could cause
distress to individuals named in the records and their families
if made publicly available. Restricting this information was also
thought to be of benefit in the fight against fraud.
Respondents to the recent consultation gave the following
reasons for restricting access to cause of death information:
Cause of death should be treated as medical
information and not disclosed without consent
Cause of death is sensitive
General agreement with the arguments for restricting
some or all of the information on death records.
A call to tighten up access to death certificates
to help reduce fraud.
A few other respondents agreed with the introduction
of a short death certificates and the principle that some information
should be regarded as confidential.
There was a broader view that it should not be possible
to trawl freely through cause of death information as it was not
in the public interest and could cause distress or embarrassment
to the relatives of the deceased. For example, it would not be
justifiable for an insurance company to search the cause of death
of a person's family when assessing whether to approve an application.
Q100. Please provide details of the Registrar
General's intentions in respect of:
a) how the proposed register will be made secure
against unauthorised access by persons outside the registration
service, whether for purposes of viewing information or amending
data held within it;
b) arrangements for disaster recovery in the event
of major software, hardware or other accidental or intended facility
damage.
a) Users of the system will fall into one of two
groups. Those that are registered as users with the system, and
casual users that are not registered with the system. Registered
users will have to go through security measures to access the
system such as enter username and password. Associated with each
user will be those functions that they can use. One user may have
viewing access only whilst another may have full update and amend
functionality available to them.
Casual users will be severely restricted in their
activity. The main activity will be viewing a registration entry.
The data on the modern records may have some restricted data items
within it. The system will only display the open data items to
a casual user or registered user without full record access permissions.
b) In common with all well run modern IT systems
the proposed system will have suitable back-up and recovery mechanisms,
disaster recovery procedures to recover from accidental or malicious
loss. The hosting service will have suitable physical security
to prevent unauthorised access to the facility to prevent damage,
access or theft of the data.
Q101. Please explain why it is no longer regarded
as necessary for claims to the paternity of a still-born child
to be supported by declarations in the forms required by section
10(1) of the Birth and Death Registration Act 1953 and why the
removal of such a requirement does not remove a necessary protection.
A parallel can be drawn between a still-birth and
the death of a child in that being named as the father in the
record has no implications in respect of parental responsibility
or entitlement. Consequently, the GRO considers that a still-birth
should be treated the same as the death of a child in regard to
the inclusion of the father's details and his ability to register
without the need for acknowledgement of paternity by the child's
mother. The question of the removal of a necessary protection
and the affect on the rights of the mother was raised in many
responses to the consultation (paragraphs 20.2.4 and 20.2.6 of
the ED refer). Having taken these representations into consideration
Ministers concluded that, on balance, the benefits to the majority
of parents outweighed the risks created by the reduction in protection
(paragraph 21.2.3 of the ED refers).
Q102. Please indicate what evidence the GRO
considers the Registrar General or a registration authority might
consider satisfactory evidence of a man's paternity under Article
27 of the proposed Order.
Evidence such as statements from relatives or contemporary
correspondence with the health sector, funeral director or burial
or cremation authorities may be accepted. Evidence that the parents
were living together at the relevant time, or indeed had another
child would also be taken into consideration. The provision in
Articles 27(1)(b)(ii) and 27(1)(c)(ii) is important in order not
to preclude consideration of an application where the other parent
may be absent or, indeed, deceased.
Q103. Please indicate why provision for corroboration
of court findings based on the sole evidence of the person seeking
the amendment is not required in the latter case also.
Article 16(11) refers to the initial registration
of a birth where the parents of the child are not married to each
other. It allows for the father's details to be included if a
declaration has been made by the parent requesting the details
to be added or a court finding that the person to be registered
as the father is the father. For the purpose of an initial registration,
no further corroboration of the facts would be required.
Article 16(13) deals with the updating or re-registration
of a birth to include the father's details where the parents are
not married and no father's details were included at initial registration.
The same evidence is required as for the initial registration
covered by Article 16(11).
The above arrangements are distinguishable from circumstances
where it is alleged that an error or omission has been made in
a record. Articles 25 and 26 mirror the current provisions of
sections 29(3) and 29(A) of the Births and Deaths Registration
Act 1953 for the correction of an alleged error of fact or substance
in an entry. The basic principle in regard to such a correction
is that corroborative evidence must be produced from a second
person either by way of a statutory declaration, or alternatively,
in the case of a change to the father's name in an entry, a court
finding obtained by a second person.
Q104. In what circumstances the GRO considers
that the Registrar General, acting under proposed new powers to
be created by Article 36 of the Order, might see fit to make a
record of still-birth available to a person other than the parents,
and to whom?
The powers in article 36 recreate the provisions
in section 30(3) of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953
that have been repealed by article 30 of the draft Order.
The circumstances in which the Registrar General
would see fit to make available a still-birth record to a person
other than the parents would be if, for example, the parents had
died or were, for some other reason, unavailable. In the absence
of the parents he would consider making the record available to
any siblings, or to other relatives with a justifiable reason
if there were no siblings or they were not available.
Q105. Please explain the meaning of the term
"unregistered civil partner" as used at Article 63(5)(f)(ii)
of the proposed Order.
The Civil Partnership Bill currently before Parliament
would provide for same sex partners to register their partnership
if they so wish. That Bill would also amend the Births and Deaths
Registration Act 1953 to add the surviving registered civil partner
or relative of a registered civil partner to the list of qualified
informants to a death registration. The term "unregistered
civil partner" refers to a person living within a relationship
with a person of the same or opposite sex but where the couple
are neither married nor registered civil partners. The term "unregistered
civil partner" is required within the Order to extend the
list of qualified informants to a death registration to include
a surviving civil partner of the opposite sex or an (unregistered)
same sex civil partner.
Q106. Please indicate whether it is expected
that this term will be given an explicit legal definition in the
Civil Partnerships Bill, and if so, please supply the intended
definition.
The term 'unregistered civil partner' is not given
an explicit legal definition in the Civil Partnership Bill.
The Civil Partnership Bill provides for two people
of the same sex to form a civil partnership with each other in
the United Kingdom, and having formed their civil partnership,
to acquire certain rights and responsibilities. A civil partnership
can only end by dissolution or the death of one of the civil partners.
Civil partner is the term used in the Bill to describe
those who have entered into a civil partnership by registration,
and who will acquire the rights and responsibilities associated
with their change of legal status.
Q107. Please indicate what discussions the
GRO has had with the Information Commissioner during the development
of its proposals.
During the preparation of the consultation document
there were extensive discussions with the Office of the Information
Commissioner (ICO) about the proposals relating to access to registration
records. A copy of the consultation document was sent to the ICO
when it was published. The Department most recently met with representatives
of the ICO in August 2004.
Q108. Please indicate what discussions the
GRO has had with the National Archives during the development
of its proposals.
The Department has a long established association
with the National Archives (TNA formerly the Public Record Office).
Indeed the two Departments share the Family Records Centre, a
public facility in London that houses a copy of the Registrar
General's indexes of births and deaths and other record collections
under the control of the TNA including census information.
Registration records are exempt from the definition
of public records set out in the Public Records 1958 (the 1958
Act) because the Registration Acts include a legal framework that
makes provision for custody of, and access to, those records.
The Department consulted TNA throughout the development of its
proposals given their overall responsibility for the 1958 Act.
There are no plans to remove the present exemption.
| Question | Registration Officers
| Local Authorities | Public
| Government | Religious
| Medical | StatisticalOrganisations
| Voluntary Sector/Miscellaneous
| Genealogical/Archivist Organisations
| Total |
| 1 | 201 |
68 | 140
| 5 | 6
| 11 | 4
| 12 | 3
| 450 |
| 2 | 163 |
57 | 103
| 6 | 2
| 11 | 4
| 12 | 1
| 359 |
| 3 | 148 |
51 | 22
| 4 | 2
| 5 | 2
| 9 | 1
| 244 |
| 4 | 141 |
53 | 21
| 1 | 3
| 6 | 2
| 9 | 1
| 237 |
| 5 | 145 |
57 | 25
| 1 | 3
| 6 | 5
| 8 | 2
| 252 |
| 6 | 135 |
41 | 11
| 2 | 2
| 4 | 4
| 6 | 1
| 206 |
| 7 | 177 |
55 | 124
| 1 | 7
| 2 | 1
| 4 | 2
| 373 |
| 8 | 151 |
56 | 19
| 2 | 2
| 3 | 1
| 5 | 1
| 240 |
| 9 | 154 |
51 | 16
| 2 | 4
| 2 | 0
| 3 | 1
| 233 |
| 10 | 190 |
59 | 123
| 1 | 2
| 6 | 2
| 10 | 3
| 396 |
| 11 | 130 |
43 | 10
| 4 | 1
| 2 | 0
| 1 | 1
| 192 |
| 12 | 144 |
45 | 459
| 4 | 2
| 4 | 4
| 7 | 27
| 696 |
| 13 | 142 |
46 | 384
| 4 | 3
| 4 | 3
| 10 | 18
| 614 |
| 14 | 170 |
53 | 145
| 2 | 2
| 5 | 4
| 11 | 4
| 396 |
| 15 | 131 |
47 | 108
| 2 | 1
| 5 | 3
| 6 | 3
| 306 |
| 16 | 103 |
38 | 40
| 1 | 0
| 3 | 1
| 5 | 1
| 192 |
| 17 | 142 |
50 | 306
| 3 | 1
| 2 | 4
| 5 | 26
| 539 |
| 18 | 122 |
39 | 17
| 3 | 0
| 3 | 4
| 4 | 2
| 194 |
| 19 | 130 |
44 | 15
| 3 | 1
| 5 | 6
| 2 | 1
| 207 |
| 20 | 140 |
39 | 55
| 3 | 2
| 8 | 3
| 5 | 7
| 262 |
| 21 | 144 |
44 | 31
| 4 | 1
| 9 | 5
| 6 | 5
| 249 |
| 22 | 101 |
38 | 9
| 2 | 0
| 5 | 3
| 5 | 1
| 164 |
| 23 | 178 |
84 | 25
| 0 | 4
| 7 | 0
| 7 | 3
| 308 |
| 24 | 145 |
79 | 6
| 6 | 3
| 2 | 6
| 2 | 0
| 249 |
| 25 | 120 |
58 | 351
| 0 | 1
| 1 | 2
| 6 | 14
| 553 |
| 26 | 83 |
30 | 284
| 2 | 2
| 1 | 6
| 4 | 8
| 420 |
| 27 | 159 |
68 | 108
| 0 | 5
| 10 | 1
| 8 | 1
| 360 |
| 28 | 130 |
63 | 21
| 0 | 4
| 2 | 0
| 3 | 0
| 223 |
| Total | 4019
| 1456 | 2978
| 68 | 66
| 134 | 200
| 175 | 138
| 9114 |
| 
