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Digital Economy Bill [HL]

I gather I am allowed to stand by way of explanation. My point is that as a House—and I certainly speak for myself—we have been subjected to an extraordinary degree of lobbying. The problem is that we have had no opportunity to look at that lobbying in a sensible and interrogative way and decide which of it is valid and reasonable and which is pure hyperbole. That is what has been missing. Many of us in this House have come in having just had our ears bashed—either by the record industry or some other aspect of special pleading. The House has not been protected with a proper interrogative process by which we, as Members of the House, can come to this Chamber fully cognisant of the things we have looked at and believe we can advance on. The lobbying process that has gone into this Bill has been quite destructive and has done none of us very much help at all.