[JURIST Europe] The UK House of Lords [official website] Wednesday narrowly defeated government-proposed amendments to the UK Terrorism Bill [text] that would have given the police more power to control information on websites thought to be related to terrorist groups. Initially, the police were to have full power in deciding whether online information had ties to terrorism. Peers amended that power by requiring the police to obtain permission from judges before informing internet providers of the removal of web pages. The government's defeat on this latest measure mirrors a similar setback last week for a proposal to introduce a new offense for glorifying acts of terrorism [JURIST report]. The British newspaper the Independent opined in its Thursday edition [report] that Prime Minister Tony Blair's 12-point plan to combat terrorism [JURIST report] announced last August in the aftermath of the July London bombings is now "in tatters". BBC News has local coverage.

Angela Onikepe is an Associate Editor for JURIST Europe, reporting European legal news from a European perspective. She is based in the UK.