Clause 9 : Progress reports. Government Amendment 67 was popular, as it reduced the amount of reports that Ofcom needed to produce, thus reducing wasted money and such. There was more discussion on Lord Lucas's amendment to make sure the government is keeping the industry moving by encouraging legal forms of access to music and the like. After all, this Bill should be about helping the industry move people to legal downloading, not punishing those who don't do it. Lord Young of Norwood Green insisted, as usual, that the amendment wasn't necessary because the clause is fine as it stands.

Clause 10 : Obligations to limit internet access: assessment and preparation. Finally, success for the Tories, as Lord Howard of Rising had an amendment accepted. When it comes to 'technical measures' - limiting or cutting off your internet - the government wants to make sure it's only used with regard to online infringement of copyright. Lord Howard's amendment made this crystal clear on the face of the Bill, so the government was happy to accept it. Another amendment was agreed to from the government, regarding copyright owners also being involved in the actions of this clause, not just service providers.

Clause 11 : Obligations to limit internet access. So, after the 'assessment and preparation' for the technical measures, we get the actual thing. This, as has been mentioned previously, is one of the most controversial parts of the Bill - if you remember my Panorama critique, it was the line they led the program with. Lord Young made it clear that "the initial obligations will have a minimum of 12 months to work" before even thinking about technical measures - so, you won't get your internet cut off tomorrow, they'll spend a year sending out letters to see if they can change people's behaviour, and only if that doesn't achieve much will they consider cutting you off or reducing your speed.

Lord Howard wasn't 100% convinced by the assurances, as he wanted it to be a little clearer by using his amendment, however having an amendment "accepted in the past quarter of an hour is a cause for happiness and I must not complain if the Minister does not accept this amendment, but should regard my glass as half full". Charming. The discussion moved on to one which sounded rather similar to the amendment accepted from Lord Howard, and the Minister said as such, but it was debated anyhow. The problem concerned limiting the powers of these regulations. Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer said that "the internet is seen by many people as being on a par with access to other services such as electricity or water", so we shouldn't be cutting people off so easily as we wouldn't do the same for the other services.

The Earl of Erroll pointed out that "quite a number of internet subscribers have voice-over IP telephones - in other words, internet telephones; and they no longer have a landline, because it saves them a lot of money", and so access is essential in case of emergency. Lord Young dismissed this particular concern saying there "may be such people, but I suggest that they would more than likely possess a mobile telephone. I see the noble Earl nodding. I do not think that we are casting them into the outer darkness of being unable to communicate". As for Baroness Miller's suggestion, the Minister reassured her that using technical measures would be "at the end of a long process", and the government had no intention of "removing people's internet access on a whim".

Clause 12 : Code by OFCOM about obligations to limit internet access. Just a grammatical amendment, nothing more.

Clause 13 : Contents of code about obligations to limit internet access. Amendments 88 to 98 (not including 95) were moved very quickly, and were generally grammatical amendments. Amendment 100 was a monster of an amendment from the government, inserting a new clause entitled 'Subscriber appeals'. It had a few amendments to it from other Lords, including Lord Whitty, who got a bit confused over the grouping of these amendments. He didn't like that the new clause establishes a new appeals body, instead of letting the courts deal with the copyright issue. The government disagrees, naturally. They "do not want to apply technical measures to anyone. We want them to stop infringing copyright. We also do not want to drag people before the courts, which is always a stressful experience for anyone, unless there is a genuine need to do so".

Lord Whitty was still "most disappointed with that response". He wanted convincing that this system could actually work outside the courts, and was "deeply worried about these provisions as they stand". It seems unusual that he was alone about this, really.

Clause 14 : Enforcement of obligations. Three amendments linked to the previous amendment about copyright owners and providers were passed.