1(1)A relevant minister may conduct data matching exercises or arrange for them to be conducted on the minister's behalf.E+W
(2)“Relevant minister” means the Secretary of State or the Minister for the Cabinet Office.
(3)A data matching exercise is an exercise involving the comparison of sets of data to determine how far they match (including the identification of any patterns and trends).
(4)The power in sub-paragraph (1) is exercisable for the purpose of assisting in the prevention and detection of fraud.
(5)A data matching exercise may not be used to identify patterns and trends in an individual's characteristics or behaviour which suggest nothing more than the individual's potential to commit fraud in the future.
(6)In this Schedule, any reference to a data matching exercise is to an exercise conducted or arranged to be conducted under this paragraph.
Commencement Information
I1Sch. 9 para. 1 in force at 1.4.2015 by S.I. 2015/841, art. 3(u)