Britain’s Labour government has said there is an urgent need for legislation to tackle abusive litigation against the media and public interest groups but has not yet set out a timetable for such action.

Speaking at the House of Lords this week, justice spokesman Lord Ponsonby said the government had supported ‘the principle’ behind the previous government’s bill to tackle so-called strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs).

Dissolution of parliament

The measure was lost with the dissolution of parliament and not revived in the Labour government’s first legislative programme, the England and Wales Gazette reports.

Ponsonby said in reply to a question from Baroness Stowell of Beeston (former BBC executive Tina Stowell) that he government is considering options.

Describing the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 as ‘a positive and significant step forward in tackling SLAPPs relating to economic crime’, he said the government is “carefully considering options to tackle SLAPPs comprehensively”.

He added that working parties, working at pace, will try to address the issue.

Any legislation also needs to protect access to justice for legitimate claims, he said.

“There were live discussions with important stakeholders – for example, the Law Society – at the time of the [previous bill]. We have every intention of continuing those discussions,” he said.