Brits are “right to be concerned” about a new law allowing the government to read private WhatsApp messages, a peer has warned.
Lord Clement-Jones said ministers need “to answer what the extent of that power is” after messaging firms raised concerns.
Peers are seeking to amend the legislation in the Lords.
“There should be a presumption that your communications are private, unless there are good reasons otherwise. It doesn't work the other way," ” the Lib Dem peer said.
"I think it should be up to the Government to explain why they want to have this power rather than for us to have to justify why we want to retain our privacy."
Ministers are pushing for regulator Ofcom to be allowed to access encrypted messages in "limited" circumstances in the long-awaited Online Safety Bill.
But firms including Whatsapp, Signal and Element wrote to the Government yesterday warning the move could open the door to "indiscriminate surveillance" of personal messages.
The bill returned to the House of Lords today where it continues to be scrutinised by a committee, which Lord Clement-Jones sits on.
The Mirror understands the privacy amendments to the bill, including on encryption, could be discussed on Tuesday or Wednesday next week.
Lord Clement-Jones said the committee is likely to suggest “putting in powers like judicial oversight, for instance, where a judge has to agree to the use of the powers, so it is only in the most extreme cases that it is adopted and it isn’t something that Ofcom can simply, of its own volition, put into effect”.
It comes as Refuge staged a demonstration calling for a violence against women and girls code of practice to be added to the Online Safety Bill "to ensure social media companies respond to and prevent online violence" against this group.
The domestic abuse charity erected an installation recreating a "danger zone" in Victoria Tower Gardens, with a giant mobile phone and signs warning of a lack of protection for women and girls "to highlight the multiple spaces online where women are at risk of abuse".
Former Love Islander Georgia Harrison today joined the protest outside Parliament. She bravely waived her right to anonymity when taking her ex Stephen Bear to court for sharing footage of them having sex without her permission.
A Home Office spokeswoman said: “The Online Safety Bill in no way represents a ban on end-to-end encryption, nor will it require services to weaken encryption.
“Where it is the only effective, proportionate and necessary action available, Ofcom will be able to direct platforms to use accredited technology, or make best endeavours to develop new technology, to accurately identify child sexual abuse content, so it can be taken down and the despicable predators brought to justice.”
A Department for Science, Innovation and Technology spokeswoman said: "We are committed to tackling online abuse and violence against women and girls.
"In the Online Safety Bill, we have made it a priority for platforms to proactively tackle the most harmful illegal content which disproportionately targets women and girls."
Follow Mirror Politics on Snapchat, Tiktok, Twitter and Facebook.
