Dear John Whittingdale,

I've just heard from Tom Watson, MP that there may be push to pass a data retention bill on Monday, 14th July, without prior debate. This is in response to the declaration by the European Court of Justice that the current EU data retention directive is unlawful.

While I understand that reasonable minds may differ on the level and oversight necessary for data retention, I think that the recent revelations -- both in the phone hacking scandal and NSA/GCHQ stories -- regarding the vulnerability of stored data to hacking and misuse, mean that we need more oversight of plans to store data on our personal lives, not less.

As my MP, I would ask you to ensure that any data retention legislation is not rushed through Parliament, but publicized, debated and carefully considered. We shouldn't sacrifice Parliamentary process to fake demands of urgency.

I'm sure Tom can walk you through the problems, but Jim Killock (020 7096 1079) at the Open Rights Group is also a good person to speak to on this legislation, or the team at Privacy International ( 020 3422 4321).

Yours sincerely,

Danny O'Brien