Digital rights

Frank Little writes:

One of the key issues on which the Liberal Democrats differ from the Labour Party, the increasingly authoritarian Scottish Nationalist Party and, sadly after such a good start, the Conservatives, is that of the rights of the citizen.

Yesterday, the Liberal Democrats outlined a Digital Rights Bill which we want to introduce in the next parliament.The Bill would introduce:

• Prison sentences for companies conducting large-scale data theft and illegally selling on personal data;
• Beefed up powers for the Information Commissioner to fine and enforce disciplinary action on government bodies if they breach data protection laws;
• Legal rights to compensation for consumers when companies make people sign up online to deliberately misleading and illegible terms & conditions;
• Code of Practice for online services who would by law have to correct information about members of the public where it is inaccurate or defamatory
• Enshrining in law the responsibility of government to defend the free press, including the rights of journalists and citizen journalists to express their views freely online;
• Prevent government from watering down cyber-security and encryption measures used by British business.

Read more here.