Lib Dems would repeal Digital Economy Bill

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Liberal Democrat Nick Clegg said his party would repeal the Digital Economy Bill, which was pushed through parliament in the so-called wash-up phase ahead of the election.

The controversial piece of legislation includes the ability to shut off the connections of persistent illegal file sharers and to close down websites hosting copyright material.

A student website asked Clegg what his party would do about the Digital Economy Bill, and if the Liberal Democrats would "reconsider" it.

"We did our best to prevent the Digital Economy Bill being rushed through at the last moment," Clegg said.

"It badly needed more debate and amendment, and we are extremely worried that it will now lead to completely innocent people having their internet connections cut off," he added.

"It was far too heavily weighted in favour of the big corporations and those who are worried about too much information becoming available," he said. "It badly needs to be repealed, and the issues revisited."

Read on to find out how the Digital Economy Act could affect your business.

Nicole Kobie

Freelance journalist Nicole Kobie first started writing for ITPro in 2007, with bylines in New Scientist, Wired, PC Pro and many more.

Nicole the author of a book about the history of technology, The Long History of the Future.