Britain’s privacy watchdog quits after ‘poor judgment’ admission
Britain’s privacy watchdog quits after ‘poor judgment’ admission
Publish Date: 2026-06-19 07:14:00
Source Domain: www.theregister.com
SECURITY
John Edwards says his position had become ‘untenable’ following investigation into conduct including inappropriate attempts at humor
John Edwards has resigned as Britain’s information commissioner, saying his position had become “untenable” following an investigation into conduct he admits caused offense.
Edwards announced his departure in a statement posted to LinkedIn on Friday, bringing an abrupt end to a saga that has engulfed the UK’s data protection watchdog for months. Edwards said he had informed technology minister Ian Murray of his resignation from the roles of Information Commissioner and chair of the Information Commission, effective immediately.
“Since February of this year I have been the subject of an investigation,” Edwards wrote. “While I have not agreed with how that investigation has been conducted, I accept that my position has become untenable.”
He added that there had been occasions where he exercised “poor judgement” and made attempts at humor that were “inappropriate and caused offence.”
“It is for this reason that I have decided that it is appropriate that I resign from my position,” he wrote. “I do not wish to be a distraction to the ICO’s important work.”
The resignation comes just over a week after the Information Commissioner’s Office announced that an independent workplace probe had concluded there was “a case to answer,” prompting the regulator to strip Edwards of his remaining responsibilities while the process continued.
At the time, neither the ICO nor the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) disclosed the nature of the allegations.
The probe first surfaced publicly in April, when the ICO confirmed Edwards had voluntarily stepped back from his duties on February 26 while an independent investigation into “HR matters” was carried out.
Edwards’ resignation statement sheds slightly more light on what prompted the investigation. He…
