Freedom and safety for telecoms and internet users essential (Barking and Dagenham Borough Liberal Democrats)

Barking and Dagenham Borough Liberal Democrats <barkinganddagenham@libdems4london.org.uk>

Freedom and safety for telecoms and internet users essential

May 6, 2009 4:49 PM
Originally published by Sarah Ludford MEP

The European Parliament has voted on a package of measures updating current EU legislation on the regulation of telecommunications and the internet.

Important issues in the debate included privacy and responsibility for security breaches, and ensuring no preferential treatment of some internet services over others ('net neutrality'). On banning the cutting-off without court action of web users downloading allegedly in breach of copyright, MEPs approved a Liberal demand for a prior court order, this postponing agreement on the whole package with the EU Council of Ministers.

Liberal Democrat European justice & human rights spokeswoman, London MEP Sarah Ludford said:

"Getting telecoms and internet regulation right is a key issue for our society and economy. As a Liberal Democrat I have been consistently vigilant in protecting the fundamental rights of internet users and championing consumer protection."

"It was a triumph to get the Liberal amendment passed stipulating that no internet user should be cut off unless a court orders it. This was in preference to a weaker one that arguably allowed the continuation of the French 'three strikes and you're out' legislation permitting ISPs to cut users off on the third illegal download without a judge's intervention.

"Traffic management is legitimate and necessary to avoid network congestion and maintain a good quality of service for consumers, but MEPs rightly insist that consumers should be informed and that national regulators must check there is no discrimination by ISPs against carrying particular (legal) services."

"We have secured a new provision whereby users must be immediately notified by their ISP of breaches of online privacy when the breach represents a serious risk. At our demand, the Commission promised to introduce new proposals applying this obligation also to banks, insurers, on-line health services providers etc, and if re-elected, I intend to hold them to that."