Doctors who have laptops containing patients’ records stolen from their cars could end up in court.

Richard Thomas, the Information Commissioner, said a “blatant breach of fundamental observation” should attract criminal penalties.

He told the Lords’ Constitution Committee that this was a new criminal offence being sought to enforce compliance with data protection laws.

The offence would be for knowingly or recklessly flouting data protection principles. Offenders could be fined up to £5,000 in a magistrates’ court or unlimited sums in the Crown Court.

Mr Thomas said: “If a doctor, or hospital [employee] leaves a laptop containing patients’ records in his car and it is stolen, it is hard to see that is anything but gross negligence.”

The commission can currently issue enforcement notices but these “do not impose any element of punishment for wrongdoing”. But Lord Lyell of Markyate, a former Attorney-General, said it would be disproportionate to criminalise doctors for losing a laptop.

Mr Thomas said the intention was not to prosecute for a single incident, but that for gross negligence there was “a need to have some deterrent in place”. He said anyone holding personal data should know the basics of “encryption” to protect that material.

A second power being sought from the Ministry of Justice would enable the commissioner’s office to inspect companies without warning, instead of with consent, to monitor their compliance with data protection laws.

The commissioner told the committee that moves were in hand to identify children who might become the fifth of adults responsible for 80 per cent of crime. “This involves analysing circumstantial risk factors such as family members’ criminal records,” he said. “This runs the real risk that children are stigmatised from an early age.”

Explore Law

• Columnists

• Law Panel

• Law Reports

• Student Law

Times Recommends

• UK legal industry faces loss of 10,000 lawyers
• Curious case of chocolate bunny trademark
• Divorce settlement granted after 22 years