Tech professionals say Online Safety Bill risks free speech

The Government’s Online Safety Bill would have a negative impact on free speech, a majority of tech professionals have warned.

In an online survey of 1,296 members of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, nearly six in ten (58 per cent) said the Bill would have a “mostly negative” effect on free speech. Only 16 per cent claimed that it would be “mostly positive”.

The legislation was dropped from the parliamentary timetable before the summer recess. It is expected to be rescheduled for the autumn once a new Prime Minister is in place.

‘Unacceptable’

Only 14 per cent of participants stated that the Bill was “fit for purpose in its current form”, while nearly half (46 per cent) said it was unworkable.

Online Safety Bill could affect freedom of speech and privacy in ways that are unacceptable in a democratic society.

Rob Deri, Chief Executive of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, said: “A new Prime Minister should take the opportunity to fundamentally review the Online Safety Bill in its current form.”

Deri warned the Bill “could affect freedom of speech and privacy in ways that are unacceptable in a democratic society”.

The Bill gives strong incentives for social media companies to restrict content which is ‘legal but harmful’ to adults and empowers Government ministers to decide what this covers. But the legislation also forces pornography websites to implement age verification systems to stop under-18s from viewing explicit content.

Concerns

Last week, Conservative leadership candidate Liz Truss said the Online Safety Bill must allow freedom of speech to flourish, as well as protect under-18s from harmful content.

Truss was speaking to members of the public in Leigh on GB News’s The People’s Forum, during which she responded to a question from a university student with concerns about the Bill.

She and fellow leadership candidate Rishi Sunak also broached the subject during a leadership hustings with The Spectator in July.