Guidance

Explosives precursors and poisons licensing: personal information notice

Updated 30 June 2021

Your personal information, supplied for the purpose of safeguarding public safety and security when authorising a licence to acquire, possess, import or use explosives precursors and/or poisons in accordance with the Poisons Act 1972, will be held and processed by the

Home Office Explosives Precursors and Poisons Licensing Unit
5th Floor Peel
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF

The Home Office is the controller of this information. This also includes when it is collected or processed by third parties on our behalf.

Details of the department’s Data Protection Officer:

Postal address:

Office of the DPO
Peel Building
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF

• Email: [email protected]

Changes to this personal information notice

The Home Office may amend this personal information notice (PIN) from time to time. If the Home Office makes any substantial changes in the way its officials use your personal information, the Home Office will make that information available by amending this and any associated notices. We recommend, therefore that you check this notice from time to time to ensure you are aware of any changes.

How and why the department uses your information

The Home Office collects, processes, and shares personal information to enable it to carry out its statutory and other functions, including those related to law enforcement, safeguarding against, and the prevention of, threats to public security.

We are only allowed to process your data where there is a lawful basis for doing so.

The lawful basis for the processing of your personal is in order that the Home Office can discharge its official function as a government department with the role and remit for licensing explosives. This is often referred to as ‘public task’ in accordance with Article 6 (1) (e) of the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018 as amended.

We share your information with other organisations in the course of carrying out our functions, or to enable others to perform theirs only when it is necessary and lawful to do so.

More information about the ways in which the Home Office may use your personal information, including the purposes for which we use it, the legal basis, and who we share your information with is contained in the Home Office Personal Information Charter.

Who do we share your information with?

The personal information we have collected about you will be shared with the with the Police and emergency services, and other government departments, agencies and public bodies where necessary to check licence suitability or where it is required and lawful to do so; for example to protect life, prevent crime, under the terms of any court order, or to comply with lawful obligations for the purpose of preventing crime, and protecting the public.

In some instances, your personal information will be shared with law enforcement and security partners, international organisations including foreign governments for the purposes of assessing your suitability to acquire, possess, import or use explosives precursors and/or poisons as per the Poisons Act 1972.

Storing your information

We retain your data for 25 years. This retention period has been set for security reasons for example, to be able to check if you have previously held a licence. A limited number of trained processors will have access and the data will be stored on secure systems.

Exercising your individual rights

If you wish to exercise any of the above rights, you can contact us either by

Email: [email protected]

Or write to us at:

Information Rights Team
Knowledge and Information Management Unit
Performance and Risk Directorate
Home Office 3rd Floor, Peel Building
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF

Questions or concerns about personal data

If you have any questions or concerns about our collection, use or disclosure of your personal information please contact us at:

Email: [email protected]

You may also contact the Data Protection Officer direct at the address above.

You have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office about the way the Home Office is handling your personal information, or if you believe we should have provided you with more information about why/how we are processing it for law enforcement purposes.