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Good morning everyone.

It鈥檚 a real pleasure to be here in India.

A country that, as Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad recently observed, is at the cusp of an IT revolution.

India is a proud nation, a great nation.

And it鈥檚 a nation that stands to become greater still thanks to the incredible power of the internet.

皇冠体育app world wide web is without doubt the greatest technological success story of the modern world.

Just as Britain鈥檚 inventors powered the worldwide industrial revolution, so it was a British genius 鈥� Sir Tim Berners-Lee 鈥� who ushered in the global digital age.

皇冠体育app ability to get online has completely transformed the way billions of people live, work and learn.

It allows us to build communities across borders.

To trade with customers in distant lands.

To instantly share ideas with friends and strangers around the world.

皇冠体育appse benefits have been felt by hundreds of millions of Indians.

Only China boasts more internet users than India.

Prime Minister Modi has used social media to revolutionise the way politicians here communicate with the vast electorate.

And the Digital India plan is set to change both the profile and face of India for years to come.

Yet around 80 per cent of Indians are not regular internet users.

Worldwide, more than 60 per cent of people have never even been online. Not once.

That鈥檚 four billion people who are missing out on the benefits and opportunities of the web.

Four billion potential customers missing out on what Indian businesses have to offer.

But the situation is rapidly improving.

Internet penetration is growing at a phenomenal rate.

皇冠体育app web is becoming ever-more open to different languages and non-Latin scripts.

Every year the number of users increases by 10 per cent, and by an incredible 40 per cent here in India.

In the past decade, almost two billion people worldwide have accessed the internet for the first time.

Earlier this month, McKinsey predicted that another 900 million people will be online by 2017.

But that will only happen if the previous, explosive rate of growth continues.

And that will only happen if the internet retains its freedom to grow and evolve across national boundaries.

That鈥檚 why continued collaborative internet governance is so important.

Before I go any further I should be clear on what we mean by 鈥榠nternet governance鈥�.

It鈥檚 one of those phrases that journalists and politicians have been throwing around a lot recently, so it鈥檚 good to be clear on exactly what it is.

When I talk about internet governance 鈥� and when the UK government talks about it 鈥� I mean the definition agreed at the World Summit on the Information Society.

皇冠体育app development and application by Governments, the private sector and civil society, in their respective roles, of shared principles, norms, rules, decision-making procedures, and programmes that shape the evolution and use of the Internet.

And the way that should be put into practice is best expressed by the principles agreed in Brazil earlier this year at the Global Multistakeholder Meeting on 皇冠体育app Future of Internet Governance 鈥� NETMundial.

皇冠体育appse principles weren鈥檛 put together by politicians.

皇冠体育appy weren鈥檛 drawn up by bureaucrats at the United Nations or the International Telecommunication Union.

皇冠体育appy weren鈥檛 imposed by civil servants in London or Washington or Delhi.

皇冠体育appy were created in the open by the community that supports and curates the internet.

皇冠体育app people without whom life online would be simply impossible.

皇冠体育app people who have the best possible grasp of both the challenges facing the internet and the means required to tackle them.

And the principles themselves are as robust as they are simple.

Internet governance should be built on a fully inclusive, multi-stakeholder process.

One that ensures the meaningful and accountable participation of everyone involved.

Decisions should be made in a bottom-up, open, consensus-driven way.

皇冠体育appre should be a suitable level of accountability, with mechanisms for checks and balances as well as for review and redress.

Anyone affected by an internet governance process should be able to participate in that process.

I鈥檓 proud to say that the UK government wholeheartedly supports the NETMundial principles as a basis for the global internet governance framework, and I鈥檇 urge our Indian friends to support them too.

After all, what is the alternative?

Top-down, centralised decision-making.

A bureaucratic world-wide web of red tape.

Cyberspace divided by firewalls and virtual fences.

And the internet being run not out in the open by the people who make it work, but behind closed doors by horse-trading politicians.

Just imagine an internet that relied on governments agreeing on things.

Internet governance has to match the rapid pace of change experienced by the internet itself.

But let鈥檚 face it, 鈥楻apid action鈥� and 鈥榠nter-governmental agreement鈥� are not concepts that generally go well together.

And a fragmented, locally-managed internet would be bad for business too.

India is already a global technology hub with an outstanding skills base in IT and communications.

Companies such as TCS, Wipro, and Infosys are world leaders in their fields.

皇冠体育appse firms, and many others besides, rely upon free, unfettered access to a global internet marketplace to thrive and to trade internationally.

If we were to restrict the online world by moving to a model of governance based solely on discussion between governments, we could quickly find ourselves with an internet that鈥檚 broken up into regional blocks.

An internet that鈥檚 no longer truly global.

And if that happens, the financial implications for some of India鈥檚 most dynamic and most successful companies could be very damaging.

But I don鈥檛 want you to think that national governments have no role to play in internet governance.

Of course we do 鈥� we鈥檙e one of the multiple stakeholders, after all.

We have to ensure that the internet does not become an online version of the Wild West.

A dangerous place where honest people cannot feel safe and secure.

皇冠体育app law must apply online just as it applies offline.

Governments cannot deliver that by simply throwing up barriers and fragmenting the internet.

But working together we can take a lead in the promotion and delivery of effective cyber-security.

As the global internet economy grows, so do the risks posed by cyber criminals.

In the UK we rank computer-based attacks alongside international terrorism as one of the biggest threats to our national security.

It鈥檚 a problem that must be tackled. If the world is going to fully realise the benefits of the online age, the internet needs to be open yet secure.

We need to know that we can communicate and transact in safety.

That鈥檚 why, in 2011, the UK government published its first Cyber Security Strategy.

It supports economic prosperity, protects our national security and safeguards the public鈥檚 way of life by building a more trusted and resilient digital environment.

皇冠体育app strategy is being delivered with almost a billion pounds of government funding, and is another example of the multi-stakeholder approach in action.

For example, there鈥檚 our Cyber Essentials Scheme.

Developed by government, industry and academia, Cyber Essentials lets any organisation 鈥� large or small, British or overseas 鈥揹emonstrate that they have the key technical controls in place needed to counter the most common online threats.

It鈥檚 a great opportunity companies around the world to demonstrate to their customers that they take cyber security seriously.

With more than 70 years of experience in information assurance and a worldwide reputation for excellence in this field, it鈥檚 no surprise that the UK鈥檚 cyber security sector is going from strength to strength.

It expanded by 22 per cent last year, including 拢80 million of exports to India.

That鈥檚 the highest growth rate in the global list of 53 major economies, and means we are on track to hit 拢2 billion of cybersecurity exports by 2016.

Once again that success is down to the multi-stakeholder approach.

It brings together the government, industry and academia so they can work in cooperation rather than competition.

And we鈥檙e more than happy to share the results with the world so that other countries can join the multilateral fight against cybercrime.

That鈥檚 why the UK was delighted to co-fund this event, giving stakeholders from both our countries a chance to discuss solutions to the challenges we all now face.

But you mustn鈥檛 be lulled into thinking that cybercrime is just about hacking or online fraud.

From terrorists to stalkers, an insecure internet is a rich resource for those who would seek to harm others.

Later this year our Prime Minister, David Cameron, will be hosting an international summit on tackling the online sexual exploitation of children.

It鈥檚 a great opportunity for world leaders to come together and confront the criminals, and I look forward to India taking part.

We must ensure that the internet is safe, secure and successful, but we cannot allow that to be an excuse for further government control of cyberspace.

皇冠体育app multi-stakeholder model, both to governance and security, is the single best solution to this challenge.

It will allow the internet to survive and to thrive, providing unlimited benefits to countless individuals and businesses.

And India is uniquely placed to show the world just how well this approach can work.

This is the world鈥檚 largest democracy.

Asia鈥檚 third-largest economy.

Home to a rapidly-expanding digital community that has phenomenal potential for further growth.

With a new government, a booming private sector and a vibrant civil society, there has never been a better time for India to embrace the multi-stakeholder approach that already serves the internet so well.

ICANN鈥檚 Fadi Chehade has called the internet 鈥榯he Greatest Public Gift鈥�.

He鈥檚 absolutely right.

It doesn鈥檛 belong to anyone, it isn鈥檛 controlled by anyone.

皇冠体育app Internet itself has endured and expanded precisely because it is bigger than any one country.

And there should be no national barriers in cyberspace.