Privacy Notice

IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING YOUR PRIVACY – COLM MARKEY MEP

Your privacy is important to me. As a Member of the European Parliament, I am committed to processing the personal data of constituents and other individuals in a fair, lawful and transparent manner.

This notice sets out the basis on which any personal data I (or we, to include my office and staff) collect from you, or from others, will be stored or processed by us.  Please read it carefully to understand our practices regarding your personal data and how we will treat it.

Who I Am and How You Can Contact Me?

I am Colm Markey and I am a Member of the European Parliament for Midlands-North-West (Ireland).

My email address is colm.markey@europarl.europa.eu and I can also be contacted at Colm Markey MEP, European Parliament: ASP 12E213, Rue Wiertz 60, B-1047, Bruxelles, Belgium or at: +32 228 37 214

For the purpose of the Data Protection Acts 1998-2018 (as amended) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) the data controller is Colm Markey MEP.

What is Personal Data?

Personal data basically means any information about a living person, where that person either is identified or could be identified. Personal data can cover various types of information, such as name, date of birth, email address, phone number, address, physical characteristics, or location data – once it is clear to whom that information relates, or it is reasonably possible to find out.

What Personal information do we collect from you?

We will record only as much information as is necessary to provide a service to you.  You may give us personal data by:

• Corresponding with us by phone, e-mail or otherwise.
• Filling in forms on our website such as the “contact us” form;
• Applying to work with us – submitting your CV, cover letter, etc;
• Requesting to volunteer with us;
• In the process of making a donation;
• The submission of membership applications or membership renewals;

Why do we collect this information?

We collect the information in order to represent you (at your request), to provide you with services, to promote our services or to recruit staff or volunteers.  We may use this information:

• To set you up as a client on our systems so as to process representations on your behalf or to provide you with other services;
• To liaise with you about events, services or representation that we are providing for you.
• To deliver information about our services, where you have subscribed to receive same;
• To process applications of prospective employees and volunteers;

The legal bases for the processing of your data are:

• That, as a public representative, you have directly requested me to make a representation on your behalf which may mean that personal information (including, sometimes, special category data or criminal offence data) will have to be shared with other people.
  • For example, if I make a representation to a State body or a Department, a limited number of people there will have to consider and deal with the information to give me an answer.
  • Other than in cases of special urgency, we will ask you, before we deal with a representation or request, to confirm its content, and also to confirm that you have read and understood this Privacy Notice and appreciate what will happen to the information you give me.
  • You will be asked to sign a form which allows you to give that acknowledgement.

• That, as a public representative, I have received a request from another person on your behalf to make such a representation.
  • In this case, they will need to show me that they have your consent to make this request on your behalf (except where the data subject is, because of physical or mental incapacity, or because (s)he is too young, incapable of giving the consent).
• That you have provided consent for the processing for one or more specified purposes such as marketing, e.g. by subscribing to our newsletter;
• That processing your information is necessary:
  • in order to protect the vital interests of you or of another natural person;
  • for the performance of a contract which you have entered into with us or to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract;
  • for compliance with a legal obligation to which we are subject;
  • for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in me as the controller.

Special Category Data and the lawful basis for that processing activity.

Stricter rules apply to some types of personal information which may be described as special category data and criminal offence data (see note below).

The legal bases for the processing of special category data or sensitive data are:

• That you have explicitly provided consent.
• Processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which we are subject.

Other Sources of Personal Information

Most of the personal information we deal with comes from the person, such as you, to whom the information relates, as outlined above. However, we may from time to time get personal information about other people. This might happen where one person legitimately makes a representation on someone else’s behalf.  Or, it could occur if someone makes what is called a whistleblower’s disclosure.

In principle, we must tell you promptly if we get personal information about you from someone else, but there are exceptions. Two significant exceptions arise where it would involve disproportionate effort to tell you, or where telling you would be inconsistent with a legitimate reason why the information was given to us.

Who Will Get Your Personal Information?

This depends on why we are dealing with it.  No-one will get it voluntarily who does not need to receive it for the purpose for which it was given. For example, if you ask me to make a representation involving your personal information, that information will be passed to the relevant Department or State agency and they will deal with it to decide on an answer.

If we deal with personal information to fulfil a legal duty, the relevant law will specify who receives it. If I need to deal with it to establish, exercise, or defend my legal rights, it will be passed to and dealt with by my legal advisers, and, on occasion, by other parties to a relevant dispute or their advisers, or to expert or other witnesses, or to the court, tribunal, arbitrator, mediator, or similar entity.

Occasionally, legal provisions or a court order may require me to deal with personal information for a purpose apart from why I got it or was otherwise dealing with it.

Transfers to Third Countries

I do not believe that any personal information I am dealing with and to which this Privacy Notice applies will be transferred to a country outside the EU.

How long do we keep hold of your personal information?

The time periods for which we retain your personal information depends on the type of information and the purposes for which we use it. We will keep your information for no longer than is required or permitted.

Your data will not be retained by me once I cease to be a member of the European Parliament and there is no prospect of my being re-elected within a short period.  (There may be rare exceptions to this assurance, such as where the personal information is relevant to a legal dispute ongoing at the time when I stop being a member).

Maintaining contact

It may not always be clear when an existing query requires one of us to contact the other again, and I may in due course be able to help you with some matter other than the one you initially got in touch about.  I may hold onto your contact details so I can send you circulars or newsletters, or tell you about my policies or electoral activities.  This is because supporting the democratic process is in the public interest.

Therefore, I will retain basic contact details such as your phone number(s) and email address unless: you tell me you don’t want me to retain that information or at the end of 3 years from your last communication with me.

Even where I do keep your contact details, I will not email you, ring or text you, or have you rung or texted on your mobile phone, or have an automated phone call made to you, unless you have consented to the particular means of communication beforehand.

We may communicate with you with information about certain seminars, meetings and fundraising events via email and or text message if you have consented to this. Such consent can be withdrawn at any time.

When processing is for the submission of an entry to a fundraiser or to donate or to volunteer or to submit a view or opinion, it is done so on the basis of your explicit consent which we request at the time you provide your Personal Data and which you can withdraw at any time.

Further Dealing With Personal Information

It would be very exceptional for me to deal with personal information for a purpose other than the purpose for which it was received. The need to do so might arise because of a legal obligation.

Your Rights About Your Personal Information

• You may ask me for a copy of your personal information held by me.
• You may ask me to supplement or correct your personal information if it is incomplete or incorrect (including out of date).
• You may ask me to delete personal information, especially if you have withdrawn consent to my dealing with it or I no longer need it, or not to deal with it for the time being, for example, if you think it is incorrect.
• If I am dealing with your personal information on the basis of your consent, you can normally require me to forward it on to some other person named by you.
• You may be entitled to object to my dealing with your personal information in the public interest or in my exercise of official authority, but this entitlement is subject to some legal qualifications depending on the personal information and why I am dealing with it.
• You may object at any stage to my holding on to your contact details (other than your name and address on the electoral register) and in nearly every conceivable circumstance I will respect your wishes about this.
• You are entitled not to be subject to automated decision making, including profiling.

Redress

If you are not content with how I am dealing with your personal information, you may bring your dissatisfaction to the attention of the Data Protection Commission: see https://dataprotection.ie

NOTES

​Special Category Data

Special category data means personal information about a person’s:

• race;
• ethnic background;
• political opinions;
• religion;
• philosophical beliefs;
• membership of a trade union;
• genes (biological inheritance);
• biometric data (such as fingerprints on a passport);
• health;
• sex life;
• sexual orientation;

Criminal offence data (that is, personal information governed by GDPR, Article 10) means personal information about a person’s:

• alleged commission of criminal offences;
• criminal convictions;
• being subject to security measures related to criminal offences or convictions

Activities of a Political Party

A political party is allowed, in the course of its activities, to deal with special category data (especially political opinions) where dealing with the information relates to the party’s members, or former members, or someone who is regularly in contact with the party in connection with party purposes.

I will deal with your personal information if this applies to you and your personal information, and it is appropriate, having regard to my role within the party, for me to do so. This authority to deal with personal information does not apply to members of the public generally.

Also, my dealing with the personal information must not involve the party’s dealing with it by disclosing it outside the party without the consent of the person to whom the information relates.