The Law Commission recommended that the consent, but not the personal consent, of the Director of Public Prosecutions should be required. We believe, however, that, because the offence already has tight parameters due to the requirement for an intention to cause serious self-harm amounting to grievous bodily harm, as I have just outlined, an additional safeguard of obtaining the personal consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions is not necessary. We would expect the usual prosecutorial discretion and guidance to provide sufficient safeguards against inappropriate prosecutions in this area. As I say, we will continue to engage with those groups that have helped to inform the drafting of these clauses as they are implemented to make sure that that assessment is indeed borne out.
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Amendment 268AZB aims to apply business disruption enforcement measures to any internet service that “persistently fails to prevent”, or indeed allows, the illegal encouragement of self-harm. As I mentioned earlier in Committee, the Bill significantly reduces the likelihood of users encountering this material on internet sites. It requires all user-to-user services to remove this content and search services to minimise users’ access to it. I hope that that reassures the noble Lords in relation to their amendments to my amendment.