An Exploration of the Efficacy of ‘Privacy’ Rights Protection in 21st Century Britain

The law on privacy has undergone significant changes over the past decade. Traditionally, the right to privacy was limited, but has since been conceived within a tortious right of the misuse of private information. It can be described as developed by the courts in a piecemeal fashion, but has accelerated in recent years, in part due to the Human Rights Act 1998. The relevant Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) and Article 10 (right to freedom of expression) of the European Convention of Human Rights have been absorbed into English law. These are two of the most important values in a modern democratic society and are essential to individual self-fulfilment. The research aim of this dissertation is to examine the law on privacy in the UK to determine whether it adequately protects an individual’s right to privacy. The hypothesis proposes that the operation of the current law is not satisfactory in protecting an individual against the invasion of their privacy. In particular, whilst the press perform a fundamental role through investigative journalism of significance, there have been direct breaches of informational autonomy and a specific lack of control over acceptable standards in news printing.