The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is leading an international debate about the future direction of data protection law in Europe.

There are growing fears that the current European directive is no longer " fit for purpose" and is “showing its age”. The UK’s privacy watchdog said the research will consider how consumers’ rights can be enhanced in a rapidly evolving information society.

It will also provide EU bodies, governments and the data protection community with proposals for improving regulatory approaches to protecting privacy and personal information.

UK Information Commissioner Richard Thomas said: “European data protection law is increasingly seen as out of date, bureaucratic and excessively prescriptive.

"It is failing to meet new challenges to privacy, such as the transfer of personal details across international borders and the huge growth in personal information online. It is high time the law is reviewed and updated for the modern world.

"This research will help identify ways we can make the law more straightforward and more effective in practice, but less burdensome for organisations."

The ICO said that RAND Europe, an independent think tank, has been commissioned to carry out the research into the European Data Protection law and to identify promising avenues for reform.

Mr Thomas said it was good that the European Commission will also conduct a study of its own.

“We expect our research to complement and strengthen the overall impetus for reform. I also very much hope that the UK government will demonstrate leadership by engaging constructively in these reviews and supporting better regulation and practical approaches to international data protection,” he said.