Friday 18 November 2011

ICO to change its name


I am not making this up. The hunt is on to dream up a new name for the Information Commissioner’s Office in Wilmslow.

What? Does that mean we could see the Office of the Information Commissioner (aka “the OIC”), or perhaps the Information Rights Commissioner?

No way. Actually what is on the cards is a new name for Wycliffe House the office building that houses the Information Commissioner’s staff in Water Lane in Wilmslow.

The ICO’s staff have been invited to submit ideas for a new name for the building. I haven’t, but that won’t stop me thinking up something appropriate. And even if you haven’t been specifically asked, please consider this as an extended invitation to join in the fun.

Let’s set some ground rules here:

1) No profanities in any of the working languages of the European Community.
2) Try and get the name to reflect the work that goes on there.
3) Include an homage to previous leaders. A quick hint – the former leaders were Eric Howe, Elizabeth France, Richard Thomas, while the current incumbent is Christopher Graham.

Surely, there must be better ideas than these:

Using the first letter of the surnames of Eric Howe, Elizabeth France, Richard Thomas and Christopher Graham, and adding I for Information and R for Rights you get Fright, so perhaps Fright House?

Or, using the first two letters of the forenames of Eric Howe, Elizabeth France, Richard Thomas and Christopher Graham, and D for Data, P for Protection and A for Act you get Charred Pile, and Harped Relic. No, I don't like those very much.

Or, using the first two letters of the forenames of Eric Howe, Elizabeth France, Richard Thomas and Christopher Graham, and I for Information C for Commissioner and O for Office you get Heroic Relic. No, that's not right, either.

Or, using the first two letters of the forenames of Eric Howe, Elizabeth France, Richard Thomas and Christopher Graham, and U for Upholding, D for Data, and P for Protection you get Crier Upheld and Epic Hurdler. Still not very impressive.

And finally for today, using the first letter of the surnames of Eric Howe, Elizabeth France, Richard Thomas and Christopher Graham, and adding U for upholding, I for Information and R for Rights you get Frig Hut. Come on readers, you ought to be able to do better than this!

Fellow entrants are welcome to use a clever website to help them create their own anagrams once they’ve decided what letters to use – take a look and try out the wonderful http://wordsmith.org/anagram. I would get your entries over to your usual contact at the ICO sharpish, if I were you.


Sources:
http://www.ico.gov.uk/about_us/boards_committees_and_minutes/executive_team.aspx
(See Item 7.1 of the minutes of the ICO’s Executive Team Meeting, held on 3 October 2011)

http://babynamesworld.parentsconnect.com/meaning_of_Frig.html (Frig is not a rude word, actually it’s of Germanic origin, meaning peaceful ruler or peacekeeper – which is what the ICO tries to do, an awful lot of the time).

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