Government's plans to disconnect illegal downloaders are justifiable, say MPs

Controversial measures to reduce illegal downloading have been reviewed by a committee of MPs and found to be 'justifiable' this week, despite complaints from campaigners and ISPs.

The government's Digital Economy bill has made the headlines over its proposed measures for dealing with so-called internet pirates by first forcing ISPs to send a warning letter, and then disconnecting repeat offenders. Both ISPs and consumer rights groups have opposed the measures, pointing out that ISPs should not be required to police online behaviour, and that  tracking the IP address responsible for illegal downloads does not necessarily locate the user responsible.

However, the Parliamentary Select Committee on Human Rights has reviewed the plans and not only found them to be justifiable, but agreed that the government should be making more decisive moves to protect creators' rights; although it has admitted that more information is required. The committee has asked for both a better explanation of the rules, in particular exactly what constitutes a repeat offender; and has asked Ofcom to review the technical side of things.

"It is unlikely that the operation of these proposals alone will lead to a significant risk of a breach of individual internet users' right to respect for privacy, their right to freedom of expression or their right to respect for their property rights," the committee's report says, going on to add: "The limited impact on these rights by the operation of the copyright infringement reporting mechanism proposed is likely to be justifiable."