Online Safety Act 2023: Platform Categorisation

Debate between Baroness Morgan of Cotes and Baroness Lloyd of Effra

Thursday 29th October 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Morgan of Cotes]

To ask His Majesty’s Government why Ofcom’s register of categorised services contains no platform categorised by reference to risk or functionality alone, when the Online Safety Act 2023 permits it; and why small, high-harm platforms, including those hosting antisemitic and suicide-related content, remain outside Category 1.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade and Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (Baroness Lloyd of Effra) (Lab)]

My Lords, Ofcom assessed and designated services on the register, in line with the regulations passed by Parliament, in February 2025. These set category 1 threshold conditions, combining user numbers and functionalities. Category 1 is intended for platforms with a minimum of 7 million monthly UK users, reflecting their reach and influence. Smaller services are required to tackle illegal content, including suicide, self-harm and antisemitic content, that meets the legal threshold and to protect children from harmful content.

[Baroness Morgan of Cotes (Non-Afl)]

I thank the Minister very much for her Answer, but the real reason is that, in 2025, then Ministers chose to accept Ofcom’s advice to categorise online platforms on the basis of user numbers alone. Do current Ministers now accept that Ofcom would have been better able, for example, to block a notorious suicide forum, to tackle platforms promoting hate-filled antisemitic content, or those recruiting people for activities hostile to the United Kingdom, if it had followed what this House legislated for in 2023? If Ministers had pushed back on Ofcom’s advice and instead required it to categorise platforms on the basis of functionality or size, as the House wanted, would that have given Ministers that flexibility?

[Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)]

Categorisation, as the noble Baroness knows, does not determine whether a service is regulated or subject to enforcement by Ofcom. The Government considered options to categorise small but risky services, including those proposed by many thoughtful people on this complicated issue, but ultimately a workable and robust condition for capturing small but risky services was not found. I emphasise that the Government share the significant concerns about small but risky services, such as those that exist purely to stoke hate and division. Ofcom has established the Small but Risky Services Taskforce. It has monitored and carried out active engagement with the providers of 14 services that represent a significant risk of harm to children, from harmful content they host or disseminate. A number of those have geo-blocked the UK as a result, but the Government keep the effectiveness of the Online Safety Act under review and will not hesitate to take further action where there is clear evidence it is needed.