Terrorism Bill

House of Lords

Session 2005 - 06
Internet Publications
Other Bills before Parliament

Terrorism Bill

Terrorism Bill
Part 1 — Offences
1

A
Bill
[AS AMENDED ON REPORT]
To
make provision for and about offences relating to conduct carried out, or
capable of being carried out, for purposes connected with terrorism; to amend
enactments relating to terrorism; to amend the Intelligence Services Act 1994
and the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000; and for connected
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and
consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present
Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
Part 1
Offences
Encouragement etc. of terrorism
1
Encouragement of terrorism
(1)
This section applies to a statement that is likely to be understood by some or all
5
of the members of the public to whom it is published as a direct or indirect
encouragement or other inducement to them to the commission, preparation or
instigation of acts of terrorism or Convention offences.
(2)
A person commits an offence if—
(a)
he publishes a statement to which this section applies or causes another
10
to publish such a statement; and
(b)
at the time he publishes it or causes it to be published, he—
(i)
intends members of the public to be directly or indirectly
encouraged or otherwise induced by the statement to commit,
prepare or instigate acts of terrorism or Convention offences; or
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Terrorism Bill
Part 1 — Offences
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(ii)
is reckless as to whether members of the public will be directly
or indirectly encouraged or otherwise induced by the statement
to commit, prepare or instigate such acts or offences.
(3)
For the purposes of this section, “indirect encouragement” comprises the
making of a statement describing terrorism in such a way that the listener
5
would infer that he should emulate it.
(4)
For the purposes of this section the questions how a statement is likely to be
understood and what members of the public could reasonably be expected to
infer from it must be determined having regard both—
(a)
to the contents of the statement as a whole; and
10
(b)
to the circumstances and manner of its publication.
(5)
It is irrelevant for the purposes of subsections (1) to (3)—
(a)
whether anything mentioned in those subsections relates to the
commission, preparation or instigation of one or more particular acts of
terrorism or Convention offences, of acts of terrorism or Convention
15
offences of a particular description or of acts of terrorism or Convention
offences generally; and,
(b)
whether any person is in fact encouraged or induced by the statement
to commit, prepare or instigate any such act or offence.
(6)
In proceedings for an offence under this section against a person in whose case
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it is not proved that he intended the statement directly or indirectly to
encourage or otherwise induce the commission, preparation or instigation of
acts of terrorism or Convention offences, it is a defence for him to show—
(a)
that the statement neither expressed his views nor had his endorsement
(whether by virtue of section 3 or otherwise); and
25
(b)
that it was clear, in all the circumstances of the statement’s publication,
that it did not express his views and (apart from the possibility of his
having been given and failed to comply with a notice under subsection
(3) of that section) did not have his endorsement.
(7)
A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable—
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(a)
on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding
7 years or to a fine, or to both;
(b)
on summary conviction in England and Wales, to imprisonment for a
term not exceeding 12 months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory
maximum, or to both;
35
(c)
on summary conviction in Scotland or Northern Ireland, to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to a fine not
exceeding the statutory maximum, or to both.
(8)
In relation to an offence committed before the commencement of section 154(1)
of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (c. 44), the reference in subsection (7)(b) to 12
40
months is to be read as a reference to 6 months.
2
Dissemination of terrorist publications
(1)
A person commits an offence under this section if he disseminates a terrorist
publication and either—
(a)
he does so with the intention of directly or indirectly encouraging or
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inducing the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of

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terrorism, or of providing information with a view to its use in the
commission or preparation of such acts; or
(b)
he is reckless as to whether the dissemination of that publication will
have such an effect.
(2)
A person disseminates a terrorist publication if he—
5
(a)
distributes or circulates a terrorist publication;
(b)
gives, sells or lends such a publication;
(c)
offers such a publication for sale or loan;
(d)
provides a service to others that enables them to obtain, read, listen to
or look at such a publication, or to acquire it by means of a gift, sale or
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loan;
(e)
transmits the contents of such a publication electronically; or
(f)
has such a publication in his possession with a view to its becoming the
subject of conduct falling within any of paragraphs (a) to (e).
(3)
For the purposes of this section a publication is a terrorist publication, in
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relation to conduct falling within subsection (2), if matter contained in it is
likely—
(a)
to be understood, by some or all of the persons to whom it is or may
become available as a consequence of that conduct, as a direct or
indirect encouragement or other inducement to them to the
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commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism; or
(b)
to be useful in the commission or preparation of such acts and to be
understood, by some or all of those persons, as contained in the
publication, or made available to them, wholly or mainly for the
purpose of being so useful to them.
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(4)
For the purposes of this section the question whether a publication is a terrorist
publication in relation to particular conduct must be determined—
(a)
as at the time of that conduct; and
(b)
having regard both to the contents of the publication as a whole and to
the circumstances in which that conduct occurs.
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(5)
It is irrelevant for the purposes of this section whether anything mentioned in
subsections (1) to (3) is in relation to the commission, preparation or instigation
of one or more particular acts of terrorism, of acts of terrorism of a particular
description or of acts of terrorism generally.
(6)
For the purposes of this section it is also irrelevant, in relation to matter
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contained in any article whether any person—
(a)
is in fact encouraged or induced by that matter to commit, prepare or
instigate acts of terrorism; or
(b)
in fact makes use of it in the commission or preparation of such acts.
(7)
In proceedings for an offence under this section against a person in respect of
40
conduct to which subsection (8) applies, it is a defence for him to show—
(a)
that the matter by reference to which the publication in question was a
terrorist publication neither expressed his views nor had his
endorsement (whether by virtue of section 3 or otherwise); and
(b)
that it was clear, in all the circumstances of the conduct, that that matter
45
did not express his views and (apart from the possibility of his having
been given and failed to comply with a notice under subsection (3) of
that section) did not have his endorsement.

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(8)
This subsection applies to the conduct of a person to the extent that—
(a)
the publication to which his conduct related contained matter by
reference to which it was a terrorist publication by virtue of subsection
(3)(a); and
(b)
that person is not proved to have engaged in that conduct with the
5
intention of making that matter available as mentioned in subsection
(1B)(a).
(9)
A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable—
(a)
on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding
7 years or to a fine, or to both;
10
(b)
on summary conviction in England and Wales, to imprisonment for a
term not exceeding 12 months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory
maximum, or to both;
(c)
on summary conviction in Scotland or Northern Ireland, to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to a fine not
15
exceeding the statutory maximum, or to both.
(10)
In relation to an offence committed before the commencement of section 154(1)
of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (c. 44), the reference in subsection (9)(b) to 12
months is to be read as a reference to 6 months.
(11)
In this section—
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“lend” includes let on hire, and “loan” is to be construed accordingly;
“publication” means an article or record of any description that contains
any of the following, or any combination of them—
(a)
matter to be read;
(b)
matter to be listened to;
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(c)
matter to be looked at or watched.
3
Application of ss. 1 and 2 to internet activity etc.
(1)
This section applies for the purposes of sections 1 and 2 in relation to cases
where—
(a)
a statement is published or caused to be published in the course of, or
30
in connection with, the provision or use of a service provided
electronically; or
(b)
conduct falling within section 2(2) was in the course of, or in connection
with, the provision or use of such a service.
(2)
The cases in which the statement, or the article or record to which the conduct
35
relates, is to be regarded as having the endorsement of a person (“the relevant
person”) at any time include a case in which—
(a)
a constable has given him a notice under subsection (3);
(b)
that time falls more than 2 working days after the day on which the
notice was given; and
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(c)
the relevant person has failed, without reasonable excuse, to comply
with the notice.
(3)
A notice under this subsection is a notice which—
(a)
declares that, in the opinion of the constable giving it, the statement or
the article or record is unlawfully terrorism-related;
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(b)
requires the relevant person to secure that the statement or the article
or record, so far as it is so related, is not available to the public or is
modified so as no longer to be so related;
(c)
warns the relevant person that a failure to comply with the notice
within 2 working days will result in the statement, or the article or
5
record, being regarded as having his endorsement; and
(d)
explains how, under subsection (4), he may become liable by virtue of
the notice if the statement, or the article or record, becomes available to
the public after he has complied with the notice.
(4)
Where—
10
(a)
a notice under subsection (3) has been given to the relevant person in
respect of a statement, or an article or record, and he has complied with
it, but
(b)
he subsequently publishes or causes to be published a statement which
is, or is for all practical purposes, the same or to the same effect as the
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statement to which the notice related, or to matter contained in the
article or record to which it related, (a “repeat statement”);

the requirements of subsection (2)(a) to (c) shall be regarded as satisfied in the
case of the repeat statement in relation to the times of its subsequent
publication by the relevant person.
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(5)
In proceedings against a person for an offence under section 1 or 2 the
requirements of subsection (2)(a) to (c) are not, in his case, to be regarded as
satisfied in relation to any time by virtue of subsection (4) if he shows that he—
(a)
has, before that time, taken every step he reasonably could to prevent a
repeat statement from becoming available to the public and to ascertain
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whether it does; and
(b)
was, at that time, a person to whom subsection (6) applied.
(6)
This subsection applies to a person at any time when he—
(a)
is not aware of the publication of the repeat statement; or
(b)
having become aware of its publication, has taken every step that he
30
reasonably could to secure that it either ceased to be available to the
public or was modified as mentioned in subsection (3)(b).
(7)
For the purposes of this section a statement or an article or record is unlawfully
terrorism-related if it constitutes, or if matter contained in the article or record
constitutes—
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(a)
something that is capable of being understood as a direct or indirect
encouragement or other inducement to the commission, preparation or
instigation of acts of terrorism or Convention offences; or
(b)
information which—
(i)
is capable of being useful in the commission or preparation of
40
such acts; and
(ii)
is in a form or context in which it is capable of being understood
as being wholly or mainly for the purpose of being so useful.
(8)
In this section “working day” means any day other than—
(a)
a Saturday or a Sunday;
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(b)
Christmas Day or Good Friday; or
(c)
a day which is a bank holiday under the Banking and Financial
Dealings Act 1971 (c. 80) in any part of the United Kingdom.