ABOUT US

The ICO is the UK’s independent regulator for information rights, promoting data privacy for individuals and openness in public bodies. We regulate under a wide range of legislation, including responsibilities for data protection and freedom of information.

With economists located across the UK (Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, London, Wilmslow), we offer an inclusive environment and provide flexible working conditions and a range of training and development opportunities. This includes:

• a structured economics profession including targeted learning and development opportunities, and visibility of career development pathways;
• membership of the Government Economic Service (GES);
• structured pay progression framework that provides tangible rewards for sustained progress and contribution;
• networking opportunities and a mechanism for social learning, sharing insight and good practice; and
• opportunities to do work to enhance diversity and inclusion within economics.

The ICO’s work is interesting and immensely rewarding – it is of national importance and increasingly in the public eye, covering areas such as biometrics, AI, and the all facets of the digital economy. We are at the forefront of information rights policy development, providing direct advice to the public, and enforcing the UK’s data protection and freedom of information laws. We hold a unique position as a regulator across the whole of the private, public and third sectors.
As an employer, we are passionate about making a positive difference to the lives and careers of our people, and we empower you to be curious, impactful, collaborative and respectful. We want to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to pursue a fulfilling and engaging career, able to acquire new skills and enjoy a supportive working environment.
Further details about being an economist at the ICO can be found on our website Economic Analysis , ICO.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Do you want to be part of a team that produces economic analysis and research to support decision making, via options appraisal, impact assessment, ex-post evaluation, primary and secondary research and other analytics (eg economic modelling and geospatial mapping)?

We have opportunities for Economic Analysts to join our economics function across both teams.

• Our competition and research team provide economic thinking, analysis and research to support policy development, decisions, and investigations, and articulate interactions between our duty to uphold data protection and the regulatory duties we have to give regard to competition, economic growth and innovation.
• Our impact-focused team delivers robust, impartial analysis to support the development of interventions. We help build understanding of their effects using approved government models and methods, lead regulatory impact measurement (both ex-ante and ex-post), and offer broader advice on economic and analytical matters.

Whether the issue is understanding how we enable businesses in the UK economy, the interaction of privacy and competition or the impact of measures to protect children’s privacy online, economics is vital to our understanding of data and privacy issues. As an Economic Analyst you will support the ICO’s work across the full range of our responsibilities, ensuring that our actions are underpinned with high quality economic analysis. Examples of work include:

• supporting policy development by aiding understanding of the impact of our policies, programmes and projects using approved models and methods following principles from the Green and Magenta Books aligned with the ICO’s impact frameworks;
• supporting the provision of advice to clarify the economic, social and public costs, benefits, and trade-offs of our policy decisions;
• engaging and collaborating across the organisation to provide expert guidance, research and analysis on economic matters. Examples include - understanding data controllers’ processing of personal data and use of technologies as identified in our Data Controller Study or understanding how artificial intelligence could impact the labour market;
• providing learning resources and training across the organisation to ensure there is awareness and common understanding of conducting research, appraisal, impact assessment, evaluation, and related areas of economic thinking; and
• engaging and developing relevant external stakeholder networks, via interaction with UK and international regulatory counterparts and government, academia, conference attendance, etc.

Reporting to a Principal Economist you will provide high quality economic analysis, collaborating with other experts in multidisciplinary teams. You will work flexibly across a range of projects, identifying the key economic issues, analysing data and other evidence to support your arguments, and communicating them effectively to a range of audiences.

NATIONALITY REQUIREMENTS

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS ROLE WILL CLOSE AT 00:01 ON TUESDAY 16TH SEPTEMBER AND THEREFORE WE ADVISE GETTING YOUR APPLICATION IN BY NO LATER THAN MIDNIGHT ON MONDAY 15TH SEPTEMBER

Interviews will take place remotely via Microsoft Teams.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Whether the issue is understanding how we enable businesses in the UK economy, the interaction of privacy and competition or the impact of measures to protect children’s privacy online, economics is vital to our understanding of data and privacy issues. As an Economic Analyst you will support the ICO’s work across the full range of our responsibilities, ensuring that our actions are underpinned with high quality economic analysis. Examples of work include:

• supporting policy development by aiding understanding of the impact of our policies, programmes and projects using approved models and methods following principles from the Green and Magenta Books aligned with the ICO’s impact frameworks;
• supporting the provision of advice to clarify the economic, social and public costs, benefits, and trade-offs of our policy decisions;
• engaging and collaborating across the organisation to provide expert guidance, research and analysis on economic matters. Examples include - understanding data controllers’ processing of personal data and use of technologies as identified in our Data Controller Study or understanding how artificial intelligence could impact the labour market;
• providing learning resources and training across the organisation to ensure there is awareness and common understanding of conducting research, appraisal, impact assessment, evaluation, and related areas of economic thinking; and
• engaging and developing relevant external stakeholder networks, via interaction with UK and international regulatory counterparts and government, academia, conference attendance, etc