House of Commons · Written Ministerial Statement
Online Safety Update
07 July 2022 · Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
Proposed by Nadine Dorries Con Mid Bedfordshire
Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.
At a glance
Key points
- The government will publish a proposed list of priority harmful content for both adults and children.
- This list includes specific types of harmful content such as online abuse and self-harm promotion.
- The minister aims to balance protection from harmful content with the promotion of free speech.
Issue summary
The statement discusses the Online Safety Bill and its provisions to protect children from harmful online content and prevent criminal activity while promoting free speech.
Action requested
The minister is announcing that the government will publish a proposed list of priority harmful content for both adults and children, based on recent evidence and emerging harms. This list includes specific types of harmful content such as online abuse, self-harm promotion, and false health information.
Key facts
- The Online Safety Bill sets thresholds for harmful content that could significantly harm an appreciable number of UK users.
- Priority harmful content will be designated in secondary legislation after consultation with Ofcom.
- Indicative list includes online abuse, harassment, non-consensual intimate images sharing, self-harm promotion, and false health information.
- For children: primary priority content includes pornography, self-harm, eating disorder promotion, and legal suicide content.