To good to be true?

A, so far unconfirmed, rumour is doing the rounds that the Ministry of Justice is about to drop the data-sharing provisions contained in the Coroners and Justice Bill.

The Register and the Telegraph both quote "a spokesman" for Jack Straw and even the ICO's website links to an article on the Yahoo news page. With so much coverage it's bound to be true, but Matron is with Simon Davies of Privacy International on this one. The leopard may be temporarily licking its wounds but it is unlikely to change its spots. So it will probably only be a matter of time until the data-sharing provisions reappear in a different form - possibly slightly more intelligently drafted.

But as Dumbledore remarks to Harry Potter when the latter voices his frustration over the fact that he may have only delayed, rather than prevented, Lord Voldemort's return to power:

"It will merely take someone else who is prepared to fight what seems a loosing battle next time - and if he is delayed again, and again, why, he may never return to power."

And on that note Matron recommends the excellent dissection of the Bill prepared by the worthy folks at PI as a little light bedtime reading in preparation for the next battle. Right on, right on!