Data Protection and Retention Policy

The General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act (Cap 586), including the regulations made thereunder, regulate the processing of personal data whether held electronically or in manual form if it forms part of a filing system. The Department of Public Consultations is set to fully comply with the applicable provisions of the data protection legislation.

The legal basis and the purposes of processing with regard to the processing operations conducted by the Department of Public Consultations are the following:

Processing Operation	Legal Basis for processing	Purposes of Processing
Personal data collected through the public consultation platform including names, email addresses, employment, location and other personal data submitted by members of the public when providing their comments or subscribing on consultation platform.	As stipulated in Article 6 and Article 9 of the GDPR.)	The Department of Public Consultations collects and processes personal data from participants solely for the purposes of administering and managing public consultation exercises. This includes- communicating with participants where necessary, to administer subscriptions and notification services, maintaining consultation records, generating statistical information, and ensuring the integrity, transparency, and accountability of the consultation process. All personal data is processed in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679, the Data Protection Act (Cap. 586), and other applicable legal obligations.

Personal Data will be disclosed to respective Entity or department launching and managing their own public consultation to the extent necessary for the purposes of managing and administering the public consultation process. Disclosure can also be made to third parties but only as authorised by law..

Your rights as data subjects in connection with the processing of your personal data are:

• The right to receive a copy of your personal data undergoing processing, including information in relation to the processing activities. 
• The right to request us to rectify personal data you think is inaccurate. You also have the right to ask us to complete personal data you think is incomplete. 
• The right to request the erasure of your personal data in certain circumstances. 
• The right to request the restriction of your personal data in certain circumstances. 
• The right to portability of your personal data in relation to information that you have given us. 
• The right to object to the processing of your personal data if we are able to process your information because the process forms part of our public tasks or is in our legitimate interests. 
• The right to not be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing including profiling.
• The right to withdraw your consent at any time, where applicable.

Requests to exercise your rights are free of charge and should be made in writing and sent to the Data Protection Officer of the Department of Public Consultations. Your identification details such as ID number name and surname must be submitted with the request for the purpose of verifying your identity. In case the controller has reasonable doubts concerning your identity, you may be requested to provide additional information necessary to confirm it.

The Department of Public Consultations aims to comply as quickly as possible with the request and is obliged to respond without undue delay and at the latest within one (1) month from receipt of request. 

The right exercised by the data subject may be limited or restricted, where necessary, pursuant to the applicable law.

The following schedule outlines the retention requirements for the various categories of documentation within the Department of Public Consultation.

Public Consultation Platform	Retention Period	Justification
Personal data collected through the public consultation platform including names, email addresses, and other personal data submitted by members of the public when providing feedback or subscribing on consultation platform.	Three (3) years	Personal data collected through the Public Consultation Platform shall be retained for a period of three (3) years following the conclusion of the respective consultation, to ensure proper record-keeping and follow-up in relation to the measure that underwent consultation. Upon expiry of the retention period, consultation records shall be archived in accordance with established archival procedures and data protection obligations.
Feedback submitted by members of the public through the platform	Five (5) years	Feedback collected through the Public Consultation Platform shall be retained for a period of five (5) years following the conclusion of the respective consultation, to ensure proper record-keeping and follow-up in relation to the measure that underwent consultation. Upon expiry of the retention period, consultation records shall be archived in accordance with established archival procedures and data protection obligations.

Data that needs to be deleted after the established timeframes will be destructed in a secure manner to ensure that such information is no longer processed within the Department of Public Consultation. 

The Department of Public Consultation may be contacted at:

 

Department of Public Consultations

Office of the Prime Minister

55A, Transcontinental House,

Zachary Street,

Valletta

Email: onlineconsultations@gov.mt

You have the right to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority, which could be reached at the following contact details:

 

The Information and Data Protection Commissioner

Airways House,

Triq il-Kbira

Tas-Sliema SLM 1549

Telephone: +356 2328 7100 

Email: idpc.info@idpc.org.mt

Website: https://idpc.org.mt