By Polly Raymond, 12 June 2000 00:20
NEWS A plea to kill-off the controversial Snooping Bill has been delivered to the Home Office by silicon.com on behalf of the UK IT community. The Bill enters the last lap today in a House of Lords committee where amendments will be considered in an effort to take on board the growing protests from civil liberties and business groups. silicon.com invited readers to submit a final protest email, which have now all been forwarded to the Home Office RIP response centre, in an effort to represent the level of ongoing objection over the past months. Many readers reiterated the concerns they have about the Bill's implications for civil liberties. Others warned the future of UK ecommerce could be jeopardised if the Bill makes it to the statute book. One silicon.com reader said: "Forcing the ISPs to invest in additional hardware will up their operating costs, probably removing the free Internet offers we are all currently enjoying. Government legislation is deliberately restricting private enterprise and reducing Britain's effectiveness in the newest and most important current business area." A Home Office spokesman denied that claim. "Any costs involved must be limited to what is reasonable, and will be consistent with the Government's aim to make the UK the best environment in the world for ecommerce," he said. The email protests join those from a growing number of organisations, including the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), which warn that the Bill could put UK ecommerce at a disadvantage. The Home Office confirmed the BCC is now in discussions with the government over these concerns. You can see the full representation of the department's position on the Bill at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/oicd/ripbill.htm .
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