Tom Bower "", an investigation into corruption in English football. Bower's joint biography of Conrad Black and Barbara Amiel "" was published in November 2006. In February 2007, Black filed a libel suit in Toronto against Bower over the contents of the book. The suit was frozen when Black was convicted of fraud and imprisoned. The "Daily Express" proprietor Richard Desmond brought a libel action against Bower over a passing reference in "Dancing on the Edge". Desmond claimed that the book included an account of an incident that weakened his "super-tough" reputation as a businessman and was therefore defamatory. Bower denied libel
Seditious libel not a defence. The common law offence was punishable in the UK with life imprisonment. Parliament abolished the offence of sedition and seditious libel in 2009. However, there continue to be similar offences in other statutes, such as the Terrorism Act 2000, which criminalises threats of action which are designed to "influence the government" or "to intimidate the public or a section of the public" for "the purpose of advancing a political, religious or ideological cause". In Canada, seditious offences are defined by sections 59 to 61 of the Criminal Code. A seditious offence can be punished by imprisonment up