My Digital Britain Letter
As is currently in vogue, thanks to the astonishing lack of democracy around the Digital Economy Bill, I “penned” an email to the Rt. Hon. Alistair Darling MP.
Feel free to use all, parts, or none of it in your own letter if you haven’t already done so.
Dear Mr Darling,
It is rare that I take a considerable interest in politics. I spend my days working at a large local electronics company; and in my spare time I am part of a startup which is building a web-application to help small businesses manage their money.
This doesn’t leave me too much time to worry about the goings on in parliament - I just work hard, pay my taxes, vote if I get round to it, and other wise leave politics to be politics.
Recently, the Digital Economy Bill that is currently being rushed through parliament, has forced me to sit-up and take notice. I cannot comprehend why legislation which is so contentious, and which has such potential for negatively affecting both the UK and the internet as a whole - is being pushed through during the wash-up.
I have many reservations about the bill itself:
The power to shut-down/block services which have been used for “file-sharing” is very worrying. The internet revolves around sharing, sometimes to infringe copyright, but also for hugely positive reasons. Clearly copyright holders must be appropriately compensated, but restricting access to great services, and holding back innovation, is not the answer.
The ramifications for businesses who wish to provide free wi-fi to customers is also extremely concerning. To people trying to build web-based startups (of which Edinburgh has hundreds), cafes with wi-fi are hugely important. They enable us to get out of our tiny flats, get together, and work on building our companies - some of which we hope will grow and make a significant impact on the UK economy.
If the bill results in cafes removing their wi-fi service, not only will they lose our business (as we will be forced to work from home); but the joy of spending most of a Saturday in a cafe, sipping a cappuccino, and building a business will be gone. As Chancellor of the Exchequer I am sure you are aware of the importance of startups to the UK economy, and wouldn’t wish to make life any harder for people trying to start web-businesses.Ultimately whether you agree with my specific concerns about the bill or not is unimportant. I am sure you would agree that the internet is the lifeblood of the 21st century, and is only going to become more important to individuals, businesses, the government and the UK economy as time goes on.
This is why I must urge you, please, to do everything in your power to stop this bill being pushed through parliament during the wash-up, and instead give it the debate it deserves under the next government.
Thank you for your time, and I would appreciate your thoughts on this matter,
Regards, Philip Roberts
P.S. I appreciate I only have a single vote, but I thought you should know that my only considerations come the 6th of May will be each parties plans for this bill, and the internet in Britain as a whole.
