Keir Starmer QC, the Director of Public Prosecutions, issued draft guidelines yesterday against the backdrop of several recent high-profile incidents, including recent homophobic Twitter comments directed at British Olympic divers Tom Daley and Peter Waterfield.

Misguided

According to a report on the web site TechWorld, Mr Starmer described the abuse directed at the Olympians as ‘misguided’ but ultimately intended to be humorous.
In the guidelines, the DPP points out that while Britain’s Communications Act 2003 makes it an offence to send ‘grossly offensive’ remarks, the legislation intends to cover serious threats or incitement to violence.
The web site comments that Mr Starmer’s clarification is welcome, but goes on to say that it ‘re-states probably what many citizens assumed of the law until social media started generating a stream of contentious arrests; trivial, flippant, and even abusive remarks are legal as long as they are not intended to intimidate or threaten’.

Huge shift

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, consumer technology editor Matt Warman comments: ‘While the DPP’s not proposing to introduce a total free for all, new guidance on what sort of behaviour on line should merit prosecution marks a huge shift from what many users have been worried might develop. Some campaigners ... have even likened British authorities to the Stasi.’
Mr Warman goes on to describe the DPP’s guidance as reaffirming ‘the British right to free, often funny and sometimes offensive speech’.