Reform UK pledges to scrap GDPR for ‘light-touch’ laws
Reform UK has pledged to abolish the General Data Protection Regulation and replace it with ‘light-touch’ laws, while expanding a venture capital scheme offering tax relief to investors.
Reform UK has announced a policy pledge to scrap the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and replace it with what the party describes as ‘light-touch’ laws. The commitment forms part of a broader package aimed at reducing regulatory burdens on businesses and stimulating investment in the British economy.
The party also said it would expand a venture capital scheme that offers tax relief to investors. The move is intended to encourage greater flows of private capital into early-stage companies, which Reform UK argues are currently held back by excessive compliance costs and complex data protection requirements.
The pledge was set out as part of the party’s ongoing policy programme ahead of the next general election. Reform UK has positioned itself as a pro-business alternative to the current government, arguing that the UK’s regulatory framework, inherited largely from the European Union, is stifling innovation and economic growth.
GDPR, which came into force across the EU in 2018 and was retained in UK law after Brexit, imposes strict rules on how organisations collect, store and process personal data. Businesses have frequently criticised the regulation for the administrative burden it places on them, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises that lack dedicated legal and compliance teams.
Reform UK’s proposal would see the UK diverge more sharply from EU data protection standards, a move that could have implications for cross-border data flows between Britain and the bloc. The EU has previously warned that significant divergence from GDPR could affect the UK’s data adequacy status, which currently allows data to flow freely from the EU to the UK without additional safeguards.
The venture capital element of the pledge relates to the existing Enterprise Investment Scheme and similar tax-advantaged vehicles. Expanding such schemes would increase the amount investors can claim in tax relief, potentially making early-stage investment more attractive. Reform UK argues that this would help address the funding gap faced by many British startups and scale-ups.
The announcement adds to a series of policy commitments from Reform UK under the leadership of Nigel Farage, with the party seeking to build on its electoral momentum. It has consistently called for a smaller state, lower taxes and a more permissive regulatory environment, positioning these as central to its economic vision.
Labour, the current governing party, has not yet responded directly to the proposal. However, the government has previously indicated that it intends to maintain high data protection standards while seeking to reduce unnecessary burdens on business through its own regulatory reform agenda.
The pledge is likely to reignite the debate over the UK’s post-Brexit regulatory direction, with business groups divided on the merits of moving away from GDPR. Some argue that lighter regulation would boost competitiveness, while others warn that weaker data protections could undermine consumer trust and complicate international trade arrangements.
