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Public Bill Committee: 8th May 2008                     

209

 

Counter-Terrorism Bill, continued

 
 

“Schedule 8A

 

Offence under section 58A: supplementary provisions

 

Introduction

 

1    (1)  

This Schedule makes supplementary provision relating to the

 

offence in section 58A (eliciting, publishing or communicating

 

information about members of the armed forces).

 

      (2)  

The purpose of this Schedule is to comply with Directive 2000/31/

 

EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000

 

on certain legal aspects of information society services, in particular

 

electronic commerce, in the Internal Market (“the E-Commerce

 

Directive”).

 

Domestic service providers: extension of liability

 

2    (1)  

This paragraph applies where a service provider is established in the

 

United Kingdom (a “domestic service provider”).

 

      (2)  

Section 58A applies to a domestic service provider who—

 

(a)    

commits any of the acts specified in subsection (1) of that

 

section in an EEA state other than the United Kingdom, and

 

(b)    

does so in the course of providing information society

 

services,

 

            

as it applies to a person who commits such an act in the United

 

Kingdom.

 

      (3)  

In such a case—

 

(a)    

proceedings for the offence may be taken at any place in the

 

United Kingdom, and

 

(b)    

the offence may for all incidental purposes be treated as

 

having been committed at any such place.

 

Non-UK service providers: restriction on proceedings

 

3    (1)  

This paragraph applies where a service provider is established in an

 

EEA state other than the United Kingdom (a “non-UK service

 

provider”).

 

      (2)  

Proceedings for an offence under section 58A must not be brought

 

against a non-UK service provider in respect of anything done in

 

the course of the provision of information society services unless

 

the following conditions are met.

 

      (3)  

The conditions are—

 

(a)    

that the bringing of proceedings is necessary for one of the

 

following reasons—

 

(i)    

public policy,

 

(ii)    

public security, including the safeguarding of

 

national security and defence;

 

(b)    

that the proceedings are brought against an information

 

society service that prejudices the objectives referred to in

 

paragraph (a) or presents a serious and grave risk of

 

prejudice to those objectives;


 
 

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Counter-Terrorism Bill, continued

 
 

(c)    

that the bringing of the proceedings is proportionate to

 

those objectives.

 

Exceptions for mere conduits

 

4    (1)  

A service provider is not guilty of an offence under section 58A in

 

respect of anything done in the course of providing so much of an

 

information society service as consists in—

 

(a)    

the provision of access to a communication network, or

 

(b)    

the transmission in a communication network of

 

information provided by a recipient of the service,

 

            

if the following condition is satisfied.

 

      (2)  

The condition is that the service provider does not—

 

(a)    

initiate the transmission,

 

(b)    

select the recipient of the transmission, or

 

(c)    

select or modify the information contained in the

 

transmission.

 

      (3)  

For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1)—

 

(a)    

the provision of access to a communication network, and

 

(b)    

the transmission of information in a communication

 

network,

 

            

includes the automatic, intermediate and transient storage of the

 

information transmitted so far as the storage is solely for the

 

purpose of carrying out the transmission in the network.

 

      (4)  

Sub-paragraph (3) does not apply if the information is stored for

 

longer than is reasonably necessary for the transmission.

 

Exception for caching

 

5    (1)  

This paragraph applies where an information society service

 

consists in the transmission in a communication network of

 

information provided by a recipient of the service.

 

      (2)  

The service provider is not guilty of an offence under section 58A

 

in respect of the automatic, intermediate and temporary storage of

 

information so provided, if—

 

(a)    

the storage of the information is solely for the purpose of

 

making more efficient the onward transmission of the

 

information to other recipients of the service at their

 

request, and

 

(b)    

the following conditions are satisfied.

 

      (3)  

The first condition is that the service provider does not modify the

 

information.

 

      (4)  

The second condition is that the service provider complies with any

 

conditions attached to having access to the information.

 

      (5)  

The third condition is that if the service provider obtains actual

 

knowledge that—

 

(a)    

the information at the initial source of the transmission has

 

been removed from the network,

 

(b)    

access to it has been disabled, or


 
 

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Counter-Terrorism Bill, continued

 
 

(c)    

a court or administrative authority has ordered the removal

 

from the network of, or the disablement of access to, the

 

information.

 

            

the service provider expeditiously removes the information or

 

disables access to it.

 

Exception for hosting

 

6    (1)  

A service provider is not guilty of an offence under section 58A in

 

respect of anything done in the course of providing so much of an

 

information society service as consists in the storage of information

 

provided by a recipient of the service, if the condition is met.

 

      (2)  

The condition is that—

 

(a)    

the service provider had no actual knowledge when the

 

information was provided that it contained offending

 

material, or

 

(b)    

on obtaining actual knowledge that the information

 

contained offending material, the service provider

 

expeditiously removed the information or disabled access

 

to it.

 

      (3)  

“Offending material” means information about a person who is or

 

has been a member of Her Majesty’s Forces which is of a kind

 

likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of

 

terrorism.

 

      (4)  

This paragraph does not apply if the recipient of the service is acting

 

under the authority or control of the service provider.

 

Interpretation

 

7    (1)  

In this Schedule—

 

“information society services”—

 

(a)    

has the meaning given in Article 2(a) of the E-Commerce

 

Directive (which refers to Article 1(2) of Directive 98/34/EC of

 

the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998

 

laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the

 

field of technical standards and regulations), and

 

(b)    

is summarised in recital 17 of the E-Commerce Directive as

 

covering “any service normally provided for remuneration, at a

 

distance, by means of electronic equipment for the processing

 

(including digital compression) and storage of data, and at the

 

individual request of a recipient of a service”;

 

“recipient”, in relation to a service, means any person who, for

 

professional ends or otherwise, uses an information society service,

 

in particular for the purposes of seeking information or making it

 

accessible;

 

“service provider” means a person providing an information society

 

service.

 

      (2)  

For the purposes of this Schedule whether a service provider is

 

established in the United Kingdom, or in some other EEA state,

 

shall be determined in accordance with the following provisions—


 
 

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Counter-Terrorism Bill, continued

 
 

(a)    

a service provider is established in the United Kingdom, or

 

in a particular EEA state, if the service provider—

 

(i)    

effectively pursues an economic activity using a

 

fixed establishment in the United Kingdom, or that

 

EEA state, for an indefinite period, and

 

(ii)    

is a national of an EEA state or a company or firm

 

mentioned in Article 48 of the EEC Treaty;

 

(b)    

the presence or use in a particular place of equipment or

 

other technical means of providing an information society

 

service does not, of itself, constitute the establishment of a

 

service provider;

 

(c)    

where it cannot be determined from which of a number of

 

establishments a given information society service is

 

provided, that service is to be regarded as provided from

 

the establishment at the centre of the service provider’s

 

activities relating to that service.”.’.

 


 

Tom Brake

 

Mr David Heath

 

Mr Elfyn Llwyd

 

NS1

 

To move the following Schedule:—

 

‘Intercept evidence

 

 

Admissibility of intercept and metering evidence

 

1    (1)  

Notwithstanding section 17 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act

 

2000 (c. 23) (“RIPA”), evidence of—

 

(a)    

the contents of an intercepted communication (“intercept evidence”),

 

and

 

(b)    

communications data (“metering evidence”),

 

            

shall be admissible in criminal proceedings to which this paragraph applies.

 

      (2)  

This paragraph applies to—

 

(a)    

proceedings in respect of serious crime, and

 

(b)    

proceedings in respect of an offence or offences relating to terrorism.

 

      (3)  

An application for permission to introduce intercept evidence or metering

 

evidence, or both, may be made by the prosecution for the purpose of

 

conducting a criminal prosecution to which this paragraph applies, and not

 

otherwise.

 

      (4)  

Unless and until an application has been made by the prosecution in any such

 

proceedings the provisions of section 17 of RIPA (exclusion of matters from

 

legal proceedings) shall continue to apply in connection with those

 

proceedings.

 


 
 

Public Bill Committee: 8th May 2008                     

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Counter-Terrorism Bill, continued

 
 

Considerations for allowing intercept or metering evidence

 

2          

In deciding whether to admit intercept or metering evidence the court shall take

 

account of all relevant considerations, including in particular—

 

(a)    

any application by the Secretary of State to withhold the evidence or

 

part of the evidence on the ground that its disclosure, or the disclosure

 

of facts relating to the obtaining of the evidence, would be contrary to

 

the public interest, and

 

(b)    

any submission that the evidence was obtained unlawfully.

 

 

Interpretation

 

3          

In this Schedule—

 

“communications data” has the same meaning as in section 21(4) of RIPA;

 

“intercepted communication” has the same meaning as in section 4 of

 

RIPA;

 

“RIPA” means the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (c. 23);

 

“serious crime” has the same meaning as in section 81(2)(b) of RIPA;

 

“terrorism” has the same meaning as in the Terrorism Act 2000 (c. 11).

 

Minor and consequential amendments

 

4          

In section 5(3)(b) of RIPA, for the words “or detecting” substitute “, detecting

 

or prosecuting”.’.

 

 

Order of the House [1st April 2008]

 

That the following provisions shall apply to the Counter-Terrorism Bill:

 

Committal

 

1.    

The Bill shall be committed to a Public Bill Committee.

 

Proceedings in Public Bill Committee

 

2.    

Proceedings in the Public Bill Committee shall (so far as not previously

 

concluded) be brought to a conclusion on 15th May 2008.

 

3.    

The Public Bill Committee shall have leave to sit twice on the first day on

 

which it meets.

 

Consideration and Third Reading

 

4.    

Proceedings on consideration and Third Reading shall be completed in two

 

days.

 

5.    

Proceedings on consideration (so far as not previously concluded) shall be

 

brought to a conclusion one hour before the moment of interruption on the

 

second day.

 

6.    

Proceeedings on Third Reading shall (so far as not previously concluded) be

 

brought to a conclusion at the moment of interruption on that day.


 
 

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Counter-Terrorism Bill, continued

 
 

7.    

Standing Order No. 83B (Programming committees) shall not apply to

 

proceedings on consideration and Third Reading.

 

Other proceedings

 

8.    

Any other proceeeings on the Bill (including any proceedings on

 

consideration of Lords Amendments or on any further messages from the

 

Lords) may be programmed.

 

 

Order of the Committee [22nd April 2008]

 

That—

 

(1)  

the Committee shall (in addition to its first meeting at 10.30 a.m. on Tuesday

 

22nd April) meet—

 

(a)  

at 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 22nd April;

 

(b)  

at 9.00 a.m. and 1.00 p.m. on Thursday 24th April;

 

(c)  

at 10.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 29th April;

 

(d)  

at 10.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 6th May;

 

(e)  

at 9.00 a.m. and 1.00 p.m. on Thursday 8th May;

 

(f)  

at 10.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 13th May;

 

(g)  

at 9.00 a.m. and 1.00 p.m. on Thursday 15th May;

 

(2)  

the Committee shall hear oral evidence in accordance with the following

 

Table:

 

TABLE

 

Date

Time

Witness

 
 

Tuesday 22nd April

Until no later than 12.00 noon

Association of Chief Police

 
   

Officers; Sir Ian Blair,

 
   

Commissioner of Police of the

 
   

Metropolis

 
  

Until no later than 1.00 p.m.

JUSTICE

 
 

Tuesday 22nd April

Until no later than 4.50 p.m.

The Director of Public

 
   

Prosecutions; Crown Prosecution

 
   

Service

 
  

Until no later than 5.40 p.m.

The Rt Hon Lord Goldsmith QC

 
  

Until no later than 6.30 p.m.

Lord Dear

 
  

Until no later than 7.00 p.m.

The Rt Hon Elish Angiolini QC

 
   

WS, Lord Advocate Scotland

 
 

Thursday 24th April

Until no later than 10.25 a.m.

Liberty

 
 

Thursday 24th April

Until no later than 1.45 p.m.

Lord Carlile of Berriew QC

 
  

Until no later than 2.30 p.m.

Coroners’ Society of England and

 
   

Wales

 
  

Until no later than 4.30 p.m.

Home Office

 
 

(3)  

proceedings on consideration of the Bill in Committee shall be taken in the

 

following order: Clauses 1 to 22; Schedule 1; Clauses 23 to 31; Schedule 2;


 
 

Public Bill Committee: 8th May 2008                     

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Counter-Terrorism Bill, continued

 
 

Clauses 32 to 37; Schedule 3; Clauses 38 and 39; Clause 45; Clauses 40 to

 

44; Clauses 46 to 55; Schedules 4 and 5; Clauses 56 to 89; Schedule 6;

 

Clauses 90 to 92; new Clauses; new Schedules; remaining proceedings on the

 

Bill;

 

(4)  

the proceedings shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a

 

conclusion at 4.00 p.m. on Thursday 15th May.

 


 
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