I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.

After discussion with publishing representatives, it was agreed, as I said when we considered the original clause 7, that that clause was too permissive. Adequate safeguards were requested to protect economic interests and to balance the responsibilities imposed by other clauses. We will therefore replace clause 7 with new clauses 1 and 2.

New clause 1 provides that, unless provided for by regulation, nothing can be done with material once it is deposited. Regulations will be able to specify the purpose for which the material can be used. They will also be able to specify when readers can first use it. That is important in terms of high-value, short-life publications, which my hon. Friend the Member for South Derbyshire and others mentioned. Such a mechanism will allow embargoes to be placed on access to material until its commercial value has diminished. The archive value for the nation will, of course, remain.

Regulations will also specify the types of reader that can access material and will place limitations on the number of readers. In that way, a limit can be placed on the number of terminals—if that continues to be the

appropriate terminology—on which material can be accessed and/or the number of readers who can access it at any one time. Subsection (5) provides that any breach of the restrictions on the use of material by libraries will be enforceable by action against them for breach of statutory duty.

I therefore hope that the new clause will be seen as going a long way towards meeting publishers’ concerns.