Online Safety Bill: UK government claims to remove ‘legal but harmful’ clause

The UK government has decided to remove the harmful clause from the controversial Online Safety Bill. After years of deliberation, the bill was introduced in the parliament earlier this year. However, the political turmoil in the UK since summer, which saw the ouster of Boris Johnson, and then Liz Truss, forced the government to delay the bill.

After Liz Truss became the Prime Minister in September, Michelle Donelan, Secretary of State for Digital, revealed that the new government wanted to edit the controversial bill before bringing it back to the parliament. However, Truss’s resignation further delayed the bill. The populist bill is slated to be introduced in the House of Commons next week. Upon its introduction, lawmakers will be allowed to scrutinize the proposals aimed at speech regulations on digital platforms.

According to media reports, the government addressed the growing concerns over the now-scrapped clause that could’ve led platforms to block content exceedingly and curtail freedom of expression. A BBC report suggested that the axed clause would force platforms of the highest risk to remove “legal but harmful” material. Supporters of the clause alleged that the bill was being watered down for political reasons, though Secretary Donelan said that wasn’t the case.




The Online Safety Bill is aimed at policing the internet, and the government wants it to be implemented before next summer. The bill has received heavy criticism from the Labour Party and civil society, who protested that the bill was a backward step. Popular social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Facebook would come directly under the purview of the clause. However, the clause would have forced these platforms to take down harmful content like self-harm, misogynistic posts, etc.

FAQs:

1. When will the bill be introduced in parliament?
   Next week.
2. Who is the Secretary of State for Digital?
   Michelle Donelan.