The Land Registration Bill received its Third Reading unopposed and now awaits Royal Assent before becoming law.
During the detailed Commons report stage, Lord Chancellor’s Department Minister Michael Wills said developing technology to create a trusted electronic signatures system represented a “huge prize” to industry.
He told MPs: “What is clear now is that the challenge of creating a secure and trusted way of conducting electronic business is a huge prize to be won. In developing the new electronic conveyancing system the Land Registry will… work with the professions and industry to develop a system that is robust and secure.”
Wills indicated that the government was determined to press ahead with reforms, however the shake-up would not force solicitors to convert to the electronic system.
“It may be that some practitioners will be reluctant to enter the electronic age and that is for them to decide on the benefits and on the burdens. But the government is determined to develop electronic conveyancing as a means to a better conveyancing system.”
Shadow Solicitor General Bill Cash said the Bill was broadly supported by the Tories as a means of “taking forward and modernizing” the process of land registration.
But he warned that there was concern that solicitors could be brought to book for abuses of the electronic system for which they were not responsible.
He said: “The law…. should make it clear that in the case of electronic documents, as in the case of paper ones, that individuals, firms and companies are not liable where they have neither made nor authorised the signature.”
Mr Wills told him that “Innocent, competent practitioners have nothing to fear. If they have acted in accordance with the terms of their Network Access Agreement and have taken the sensible steps needed to preserve the system’s security they should not bear the liability for harm caused by careless, malicious or criminal action taken by others.”
For the Liberal Democrats Adrian Sanders said: “The public recognise the paper-based system, they recognise the security within that and it is going to be some time, I think, before the public will accept that electronic security systems protect their interests perhaps even more than a paper-based system.”
Mr Wills said the Bill offered a “thoroughgoing spring cleaning” of the present legislation and had been widely welcomed.
References: Propert-e News 15/2/02
