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Statement on what steps he proposes to take to keep illegal material off the Internet. - Copies of the proposals have been placed in the Library, and can also be accessed on the DTI's homepage on the World Wide Web.

Asked by

John Marshall (Conservative)

Answering body

Department of Trade and Industry

Type

Written questions

Status

Answered

For answer on

17 October 1996

Answered on

17 October 1996

Mr. John Marshall: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps he proposes to take to keep illegal material off the Internet. [41234] Mr. Ian Taylor: The Internet is one of the most important developments in information technology of recent years, and the Government are determined that problems with the very small proportion of illegal material should not jeopardise the enormous potential benefits of the Internet to UK users. The basis for the Government's approach is that the Internet is not a legal vacuum: the law applies on-line as it does off it. We therefore welcome the recent industry-led initiative in the UK, put forward by the two leading UK trade associations, the Internet Service Providers Association and the London internet exchange, Linx, supported by the Government and the police, and facilitated by the DTI, which addresses these difficult issues. The proposals, "R{3} Safety-Net" launched at a press conference at the DTI on 23 September, have two main parts. First, service providers will take responsibility for the removal from their servers of material which is notified to them as being illegal in the UK--for example, material which it is considered breaches the Criminal Justice Act 1988, under which it is an offence to possess child pornography. A hotline is to be established via which members of the public can report instances of material which they consider might be illegal. Secondly, news groups and web pages will be given a rating according to their usual content, so that users can chose to avoid those where illegal material has previously been found, or which contain material they personally may find offensive. Internet service providers will also contribute to research into the application of ratings systems, and the development of relevant screening software, to deal with material which, whilst not illegal, may be found offensive by many people. Copies of the proposals have been placed in the House Library, and can also be accessed on the DTI's homepage on the World Wide Web. This initiative represents a concrete, practical and positive start to the problems of illegal or offensive material being distributed on the Internet. It also strikes the right balance between the need to ensure that the Internet can be used safely and the need to safeguard freedom of speech. There is already effective statutory backing to this approach because existing law applies on the Internet. No new regulation is needed. This approach is the first in the world to bring industry, Government and the police together in this way. Work is now under way to promote its adoption internationally, which is vital given the ease with which material can be transmitted across borders. A positive start has been made in discussions in the EU following the recent Telecoms Council.

Date

17 October 1996

Reference

41234; 282 c1079-80W;282 c1077-8W

House

House of Commons

Librarians' tools

Type

House

Session

Year

Department

Member

Primary member

Answering member

Legislative stage

Legislation

Subject

Publisher