The Digital Economy Bill is hurtling towards the finish line and is expected to become law within days, now that MPs and peers are gearing up for the General Election—but it also means that there is little fight left to challenge the government's rejection of some House of Lords' amendments.

The draft legislation briefly returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday, following a lengthy PMQs. Digital minister Matt Hancock, speaking to MPs at quite a clip, pushed back on a number of House of Lords amendments during the so-called ping pong stage of the bill. Key among them was a planned Universal Service Obligation (USO) carrying broadband download speeds of at least 30Mbps by 2020, which peers had changed from a "less ambitious" 10Mbps during a government defeat in the upper chamber in February.

Labour's shadow digital minister Louise Haigh told MPs that the UK's broadband "infrastructure is second-rate" and described the bill as a "missed opportunity" to nail down better legislation for improved connection speeds and reliability across the country.

"We would of course have liked to see the government back 30Mbps in its entirety, and I do not accept that millions of consumers and businesses should simply be left behind," Haigh said. "This was an opportunity to prepare the UK for the ubiquitous future demanded by the digital revolution, and though this [government] amendment is a first step, it’s a baby step and nothing more."

Hancock had earlier told MPs that the government rejected the 30Mbps Lords' amendment. Instead—in what critics might consider to be an insipid offering—it proposed that any USO should have a download speed of at least 10Mbps, adding that once superfast broadband uptake hit 75 percent in the UK, Ofcom would be required to continually review the minimum speed.

But the pledge to bring in a broadband USO by 2020 has now been squished by the current Tory government, which—under Theresa May's premiership—has made a lot of noise about full-fibre connections.

Labour: this isn't a bill for the digital economy

Haigh was critical of the Digital Economy Bill debate being "curtailed" by a number of late amendments from the government including what she said was a lack of effort to consider the 30Mbps USO at an earlier stage of the draft legislation. She added:

This legislation is not a bill for the digital economy. The tech sector waited eagerly for the government strategy and vision for this crucial area of our economy for well over a year. And to say that it was disappointed with a lack of ambition and a strategic direction in both this bill and the government's eventual strategy would be a gross understatement.

Labour declined to dispute any of the government's amendments, agreeing instead to wave them through.

Earlier in the debate, Labour's Chi Onwurah flagged up the rights of citizens on the government's grand data sharing plans contained within the bill—which have undergone some amendments. Hancock snapped back: "the electioneering must have got into her." He added that, "yes, there's more work to do" and referenced the EU's upcoming General Data Protection Regulation, which will come into force next year when the UK will still be a member of the bloc.

But when pressed by Onwurah on whether "citizens own and control their own data," the minister responded: "Citizens elect the government and in many cases the government is responsible for the data, and having democratic legitimacy behind the control of data is critical to a functioning democracy."

The Digital Economy Bill debate lasted less than 90 minutes, after which MPs waved through the government's amendments as culture secretary Karen Bradley cheerily looked on from the front bench. And while this session was expected to involve a game of ping pong with the House of Lords, it seems that peers—with their minds now firmly focused on campaigning for their parties in the election—have little appetite to demand further amendments.

"Despite having been roundly defeated in the argument over key issues in this bill the Conservative government has chosen to take advantage of a snap election to rubber stamp this bill without the sensible proposals pushed through by Liberal Democrats in the Lords," Liberal Democrat peer Tim Clement Jones told Ars.

"The result is a disappointing Digital Economy Bill which not only fails adequately to plan for the future but also to tackle key current issues of great importance to the public."