Crackdown on internet abuse may be scrapped if new prime minister prioritises other laws
- The Online Safety Bill aimed to protect young people from online abuse
- It threatened to slam tech giants with huge fines if they failed to keep users safe
- Tory leader hopeful Kemi Badenoch welcomed the delay, citing free speech
Flagship plans to clean up the internet may be dropped by the Government, it emerged last night.
The Online Safety Bill had been due to go before MPs next week but has now been removed from the agenda.
There will not be time for it to return to the Commons before the autumn – and it could then be ditched entirely if the new prime minister chooses to prioritise other new laws.
A representative for the NSPCC said last night that any delay to the bill ‘will mean families continue to pay the price for the failure and inaction of tech firms who have allowed harm to fester rather than get their house in order’
Whitehall sources blamed Labour attempts to hold a confidence vote in the Government for the lack of time available for the Bill, which aims to introduce powers for tech giants to be hit with huge fines if they fail to keep users safe.
Campaigners were last night dismayed, with Andy Burrows, of child protection charity the NSPCC, saying: ‘The Online Safety Bill is a crucial piece of legislation that is fundamentally about protecting children from harm and abuse that is taking place on an industrial scale on social media.
‘Any delay will mean families continue to pay the price for the failure and inaction of tech firms who have allowed harm to fester rather than get their house in order.’
But the possible end of the crackdown on social media abuse – first pledged by ministers in 2019 – was welcomed by Tory leadership contender Kemi Badenoch, who opposes it on the grounds of free speech.
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