Intellectual Property Bill [HL]

Lord Howarth of Newport Excerpts

Tuesday 30th July 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord Clement-Jones]

My Lords, as the Minister knows, I have always been a supporter Clause 13. I know that many small designers will be delighted to see it contained in the Bill and I hope that it survives its passage through the Commons.

Although I did not feel that the clause needed a huge amount of amendment or that it will be the blunt instrument that some people have predicted, if the addition of the amendment makes it more acceptable, it must be welcomed. I welcome the fine tuning that the Minister has carried out.

In welcoming the amendment, and given the restrictions on speeches at Third Reading, I want to thank the Minister for the accessible and receptive approach that he has taken throughout the Bill. I hope that as the Bill goes through the Commons the further discussions that he has promised on lookalikes—and, in particular, on the comparative advertising issues which may be applicable to lookalikes—and on the kind of penalties that might be appropriate to digital copyright infringement will bear fruit.

[Lord Howarth of Newport]

My Lords, I echo the noble Lord, Lord Clement-Jones, to the extent that he has welcomed the Minister’s constructive response to some of the issues raised by my noble friends on the Front Bench and myself in Committee and on Report on the matter of the criminal offence. More broadly, perhaps I may I express my appreciation of the Minister’s scrupulousness and fair mindedness in the way he has responded to a range of issues raised by noble Lords throughout the various proceedings on the Bill. I thank him for that.

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

My Lords, I am grateful for the contributions to this short debate on the government amendment of the noble Lords, Lord Stevenson and Lord Howarth, and my noble friend Lord Clement-Jones. I should say to the noble Lord, Lord Stevenson, that I have long since realised that as intellectual property Minister I cannot please everyone all of the time. I am certainly aware of the opposition from certain quarters, including CIPA, to the criminal sanction aspect of the Bill.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank, in particular, the noble Lords, Lord Stevenson of Balmacara and Lord Young of Norwood Green, who have put their names to the amendment, for their collegiate and constructive approach. I also extend my thanks to those Members on all sides of the House who have taken part in the debates on the Bill. I am grateful for the detailed consideration that they have included in this process, both inside and outside the Chamber. The House has engaged in its role of proper scrutiny, improvement and revision and the Bill which is being sent to the other place is greatly improved. I would also like to put on record my thanks to my Bill team and other officials for their expertise and support throughout this process.

The amendment clarifies the scope of the criminal offence further and provides greater security and confidence to the UK’s designers. I commend it to the House.