Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
These initiatives were driven by Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
A Bill to regulate and limit the practice of bottom trawling in marine protected areas; and for connected purposes.
Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
The Government is committed to tackling misconduct in public procurement. All contracting authorities and suppliers are expected to act, and be seen to act, with integrity. The debarment regime came into effect on 24 February 2025.
A supplier may only be added to the debarment list if an investigation conducted by the Debarment Review Service (DRS), on behalf of the Minister, establishes that a mandatory or discretionary exclusion ground (as outlined in Schedules 6 and 7 of the Procurement Act 2023) applies and that the circumstances leading to the exclusion ground are continuing or likely to occur again.
The Minister's decision and the outcomes of all debarment investigations, will be publicly available on gov.uk. Currently, there are no suppliers on the debarment list
The timeline for completing assessments of suppliers who have engaged in poor performance or professional misconduct is dependent on the circumstances of each individual case.
The impact of the Horizon scandal on postmasters and their families has been horrendous. The Government is determined to hold those responsible to account and will continue to seek to make rapid progress on compensation and redress. Fujitsu’s role in Horizon is one of the issues currently being reviewed by Sir Wyn Williams’s statutory inquiry. The Government are carefully considering volume 1 of the report. Once the inquiry has established the full facts, we will review its final report and consider any further action, where appropriate.
In January 2024, Fujitsu committed to withdraw from bidding for contracts with new government customers until the Post Office Horizon inquiry concludes. It will bid for work with existing government customers only where it already has a contract with them or where there is an agreed need for Fujitsu’s skills and capabilities.
Individual contracting authorities are responsible for the award and management of contracts. With regard to scrutiny during procurement processes, the Procurement Act 2023 enables and, where appropriate, requires the exclusion of suppliers where they pose particular risks to public procurement. The Cabinet Office has issued substantial guidance for departments, available on gov.uk. The exclusions regime provides a framework within which contracting authorities must consider a supplier’s recent past behaviour and circumstances (or their presence on the debarment list) to determine whether it should be allowed to compete for or be awarded a public contract.
The National Procurement Policy Statement asks contracting authorities to ensure they have the appropriate procurement and contract management skills and capability necessary to deliver public contracts and encourages the use of collaborative procurement frameworks, where appropriate, to deliver value for money.
To provide transparency, the government regularly publishes Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for its most important contracts, and the performance of the vendor against those KPIs.
The timeline for completing assessments of suppliers who have engaged in poor performance or professional misconduct is dependent on the circumstances of each individual case.
The impact of the Horizon scandal on postmasters and their families has been horrendous. The Government is determined to hold those responsible to account and will continue to seek to make rapid progress on compensation and redress. Fujitsu’s role in Horizon is one of the issues currently being reviewed by Sir Wyn Williams’s statutory inquiry. The Government are carefully considering volume 1 of the report. Once the inquiry has established the full facts, we will review its final report and consider any further action, where appropriate.
In January 2024, Fujitsu committed to withdraw from bidding for contracts with new government customers until the Post Office Horizon inquiry concludes. It will bid for work with existing government customers only where it already has a contract with them or where there is an agreed need for Fujitsu’s skills and capabilities.
Individual contracting authorities are responsible for the award and management of contracts. With regard to scrutiny during procurement processes, the Procurement Act 2023 enables and, where appropriate, requires the exclusion of suppliers where they pose particular risks to public procurement. The Cabinet Office has issued substantial guidance for departments, available on gov.uk. The exclusions regime provides a framework within which contracting authorities must consider a supplier’s recent past behaviour and circumstances (or their presence on the debarment list) to determine whether it should be allowed to compete for or be awarded a public contract.
The National Procurement Policy Statement asks contracting authorities to ensure they have the appropriate procurement and contract management skills and capability necessary to deliver public contracts and encourages the use of collaborative procurement frameworks, where appropriate, to deliver value for money.
To provide transparency, the government regularly publishes Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for its most important contracts, and the performance of the vendor against those KPIs.
The timeline for completing assessments of suppliers who have engaged in poor performance or professional misconduct is dependent on the circumstances of each individual case.
The impact of the Horizon scandal on postmasters and their families has been horrendous. The Government is determined to hold those responsible to account and will continue to seek to make rapid progress on compensation and redress. Fujitsu’s role in Horizon is one of the issues currently being reviewed by Sir Wyn Williams’s statutory inquiry. The Government are carefully considering volume 1 of the report. Once the inquiry has established the full facts, we will review its final report and consider any further action, where appropriate.
In January 2024, Fujitsu committed to withdraw from bidding for contracts with new government customers until the Post Office Horizon inquiry concludes. It will bid for work with existing government customers only where it already has a contract with them or where there is an agreed need for Fujitsu’s skills and capabilities.
Individual contracting authorities are responsible for the award and management of contracts. With regard to scrutiny during procurement processes, the Procurement Act 2023 enables and, where appropriate, requires the exclusion of suppliers where they pose particular risks to public procurement. The Cabinet Office has issued substantial guidance for departments, available on gov.uk. The exclusions regime provides a framework within which contracting authorities must consider a supplier’s recent past behaviour and circumstances (or their presence on the debarment list) to determine whether it should be allowed to compete for or be awarded a public contract.
The National Procurement Policy Statement asks contracting authorities to ensure they have the appropriate procurement and contract management skills and capability necessary to deliver public contracts and encourages the use of collaborative procurement frameworks, where appropriate, to deliver value for money.
To provide transparency, the government regularly publishes Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for its most important contracts, and the performance of the vendor against those KPIs.
The impact of the Horizon scandal on postmasters and their families has been horrendous. The Government is determined to hold those responsible to account and will continue to seek to make rapid progress on compensation and redress. Fujitsu’s role in Horizon is one of the issues currently being reviewed by Sir Wyn Williams’s statutory inquiry. The Government are carefully considering volume 1 of the report. Once the inquiry has established the full facts, we will review its final report and consider any further action, where appropriate.
In January 2024, Fujitsu committed to withdraw from bidding for contracts with new government customers until the Post Office Horizon inquiry concludes. It will bid for work with existing government customers only where it already has a contract with them or where there is an agreed need for Fujitsu’s skills and capabilities.
Individual contracting authorities are responsible for the award and management of contracts. With regard to scrutiny during procurement processes, the Procurement Act 2023 enables and, where appropriate, requires the exclusion of suppliers where they pose particular risks to public procurement. The Cabinet Office has issued substantial guidance for departments, available on gov.uk. The exclusions regime provides a framework within which contracting authorities must consider a supplier’s recent past behaviour and circumstances (or their presence on the debarment list) to determine whether it should be allowed to compete for or be awarded a public contract.
The National Procurement Policy Statement asks contracting authorities to ensure they have the appropriate procurement and contract management skills and capability necessary to deliver public contracts and encourages the use of collaborative procurement frameworks, where appropriate, to deliver value for money.
To provide transparency, the government regularly publishes Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for its most important contracts, and the performance of the vendor against those KPIs.
We continue to closely monitor the impact on Northern Ireland of any tariffs. This government will always act in the best interests of all UK businesses which of course includes those in Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom customs territory and internal market. Northern Ireland exporters will face 10% US tariffs like exporters elsewhere in the UK.
We intend to apply UK CBAM across the UK including in NI. The EU's CBAM could only apply in Northern Ireland with the agreement of the UK and in line with the democratic safeguards of the Windsor Framework. The UK will continue to work with international partners, including the EU, to ensure our approach is implemented in a way that works for businesses.
In 2021, the National Audit Office published a report on evaluating government spending. The report highlighted several challenges regarding the Civil Service’s capacity to evaluate government policies, including a skills gap in evaluation.
It is the responsibility of individual government departments and professions to ensure that they have the capacity and capability to evaluate their policies and programmes, and to address any capability gaps they may have.
To support departments, the Cabinet Office is taking steps to improve the skills of analysts and policy officials across the Civil Service. For example, the Evaluation Task Force has created the Evaluation Academy to address a cross-government skills gap and build evaluation capacity in the analytical profession. The Evaluation Academy comprises 10 modules including process, impact and value-for-money evaluation that are aligned to the Magenta Book, the government’s guidance on evaluation. The Academy has been run for two consecutive years and has already led to more than 2,000 civil servants receiving training on evaluation topics and methods. The Evaluation Task Force has also provided advice on evaluation methods for 382 government programmes worth a total value of £202 billion.
Additionally, the Government Skills Campus project is building and rolling out a new Civil Service wide digital platform which will log the skills of all civil servants, including evaluation skills. This will create a Civil Service-wide skills dataset allowing for even more data-driven workforce planning and targeted action on capability gaps. Roll out begins in 2025.
In 2021, the National Audit Office published a report on evaluating government spending. The report highlighted several challenges regarding the Civil Service’s capacity to evaluate government policies, including a skills gap in evaluation.
It is the responsibility of individual government departments and professions to ensure that they have the capacity and capability to evaluate their policies and programmes, and to address any capability gaps they may have.
To support departments, the Cabinet Office is taking steps to improve the skills of analysts and policy officials across the Civil Service. For example, the Evaluation Task Force has created the Evaluation Academy to address a cross-government skills gap and build evaluation capacity in the analytical profession. The Evaluation Academy comprises 10 modules including process, impact and value-for-money evaluation that are aligned to the Magenta Book, the government’s guidance on evaluation. The Academy has been run for two consecutive years and has already led to more than 2,000 civil servants receiving training on evaluation topics and methods. The Evaluation Task Force has also provided advice on evaluation methods for 382 government programmes worth a total value of £202 billion.
Additionally, the Government Skills Campus project is building and rolling out a new Civil Service wide digital platform which will log the skills of all civil servants, including evaluation skills. This will create a Civil Service-wide skills dataset allowing for even more data-driven workforce planning and targeted action on capability gaps. Roll out begins in 2025.
This Government is committed to the faithful implementation of the Windsor Framework and stakeholder engagement is an important aspect of this. When agreeing the Windsor Framework both the UK and EU made commitments to implement enhanced engagement mechanisms, allowing stakeholders the routes to share their views on the implementation of the Framework.
Since the Political Declaration was published on 27 February 2023 the government has continuously engaged with relevant stakeholders to discuss the Windsor Framework and to ensure businesses are able to realise its benefits. We established the Joint Consultative Working Group (JCWG) sub-groups and the UK-EU joint engagement programme which meet regularly, with the most recent engagements taking place in October. This was referenced in the last UK-EU Joint Statement, following the Specialised Committee on the Implementation of the Windsor Framework on 22 October.
Outside of these joint UK-EU engagements the UK government regularly engages with people and businesses in Northern Ireland. The Minister for the Cabinet Office has met with the First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland to discuss the Windsor Framework. He also recently attended a roundtable at Queen’s University Belfast with businesses and civic society representatives to discuss Windsor Framework implementation. Likewise, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland regularly engages with NI stakeholders and hosted a roundtable in Belfast for the Northern Ireland Business Brexit Working Group to discuss the Windsor Framework on October 31.
UK government departments continuously engage with stakeholders to discuss the technical aspects of the Windsor Framework arrangements and this government is committed to continuing this engagement further.
This Government is committed to the faithful implementation of the Windsor Framework and stakeholder engagement is an important aspect of this. When agreeing the Windsor Framework both the UK and EU made commitments to implement enhanced engagement mechanisms, allowing stakeholders the routes to share their views on the implementation of the Framework.
Since the Political Declaration was published on 27 February 2023 the government has continuously engaged with relevant stakeholders to discuss the Windsor Framework and to ensure businesses are able to realise its benefits. We established the Joint Consultative Working Group (JCWG) sub-groups and the UK-EU joint engagement programme which meet regularly, with the most recent engagements taking place in October. This was referenced in the last UK-EU Joint Statement, following the Specialised Committee on the Implementation of the Windsor Framework on 22 October.
Outside of these joint UK-EU engagements the UK government regularly engages with people and businesses in Northern Ireland. The Minister for the Cabinet Office has met with the First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland to discuss the Windsor Framework. He also recently attended a roundtable at Queen’s University Belfast with businesses and civic society representatives to discuss Windsor Framework implementation. Likewise, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland regularly engages with NI stakeholders and hosted a roundtable in Belfast for the Northern Ireland Business Brexit Working Group to discuss the Windsor Framework on October 31.
UK government departments continuously engage with stakeholders to discuss the technical aspects of the Windsor Framework arrangements and this government is committed to continuing this engagement further.
The Government is committed to supporting the Northern Ireland Executive as appropriate in consulting with businesses, civil society groups, and representative organisations. There is regular contact between the Government and the Northern Ireland Executive on a range of issues and further detail will be provided in due course.
The Government and the British Business Bank maintain constant dialogue with Growth Guarantee Scheme Delivery Partners to ensure the terms and capacity of the Scheme remain appropriate. With the announcement of resources to facilitate an additional £500 million of lending through the Scheme to businesses affected by turbulence in global trade, the British Business Bank are working with Delivery Partners on how best to allocate this additional capacity. Funding allocations for future years are subject to negotiation.
The Growth Guarantee Scheme plays a vital role in helping more businesses access affordable finance for growth and investment, which is why the Government provided resources to facilitate an additional £500 million of lending through the Scheme to businesses affected by turbulence in global trade. DBT and HMT officials work closely with British Business Bank counterparts to ensure the Scheme’s terms and parameters remain effective and impactful.
The Export Support Service continues to inform UK businesses of upcoming EU regulations and their impact to their trading activities through a range of channels. This includes the "Unlock Europe" webinar series hosted by the Export Academy, which will have a session on CBAM on 23 April. We are tracking forthcoming EU regulations which will impact UK exporters and are in dialogue with business representative organisations to understand how we can best support businesses to understand and prepare for changes which may impact them.
Since the General Election, the Cabinet Office, with the support of the Department for Business & Trade, has written to departments to remind them of their responsibility to consider in their legislative plans the general requirement to make regulatory impact assessments available when bringing forward relevant legislation to Parliament. The Department for Business & Trade provides training and advice to officials across government to support their departments’ compliance with this and the wider requirements of the Guide to Making Legislation and Better Regulation Framework Guidance. The government supports the Regulatory Policy Committee in holding departments to account for their compliance with the framework; this includes publishing statements of lateness when regulatory provisions reach Parliament without a regulatory impact assessment or opinion from the committee where they require one.
The Government understands that the availability of flexible working can be important for those who are pregnant and in work. It can be equally as important for a number of other groups, including new parents, those with other caring responsibilities and those managing a disability or long term health condition. That is why, through the Employment Rights Bill, the Government is making flexible working the default for all employees, except where not reasonably feasible.
The Employment Rights Bill establishes a new right to Bereavement Leave for employees to take protected time off to grieve. We will consult stakeholders on aspects of the design.
The Paternity Leave (Bereavement) Act 2024 enabled a ‘day one’ paternity leave entitlement for employees who become the primary carer for their newborn after the death of their partner. Regulations will then provide them with leave for up to one year after the child’s birth or adoption placement. This entitlement will have minimal impact on business and no impact on the Exchequer.
Acas maintain guidance for employers on bereavement including miscarriage.
The Employment Rights Bill establishes a new right to Bereavement Leave for employees to take protected time off to grieve. We will consult stakeholders on aspects of the design.
The Paternity Leave (Bereavement) Act 2024 enabled a ‘day one’ paternity leave entitlement for employees who become the primary carer for their newborn after the death of their partner. Regulations will then provide them with leave for up to one year after the child’s birth or adoption placement. This entitlement will have minimal impact on business and no impact on the Exchequer.
Acas maintain guidance for employers on bereavement including miscarriage.
The purpose of the UK’s arms export licensing criteria is to ensure that the Government’s decisions on export licences are informed by a set of criteria which promote global security and facilitate responsible exports. The Criteria enable the Government to operate one of the most robust and transparent export control regimes in the world. We consider all new licence applications against the Criteria and will refuse any which are inconsistent with them. Specifically, Criteria 2c states that the Government will not issue or maintain export licences if there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of International Humanitarian Law.
The maximum value of UK SIELs (Standard Individual Export Licences) issued for direct export to Israel was £24.9 million in 2023.
The maximum value of UK SIELs where Israel was listed as an ultimate end-user, alongside multiple other destinations was £134.9 million in 2023. It is not possible to ascertain what proportion of that amount is attributable to Israel alone.
We do not hold data on value of any other licence type, including open licences. Data on the value of SIELs to Israel in 2024 has not yet been published.
As announced in the Industrial Strategy, my department is developing measures to accelerate the connection of high-value strategic demand projects in a wide range of sectors, while continuing to support all users to connect to the grid more quickly through broader grid upgrades.
The Department is also working with Ofgem on its End-to-End Review of the obligations and incentives pertaining to network companies in the delivery of grid connections. This will improve customer communications and ensure high levels of service for all customers. This complements ongoing, fundamental reforms to the connections process that will significantly reduce congestion and bottlenecks.
The Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently. This, combined with our Warm Homes Plan to upgrade millions of homes to make them warmer and cheaper to run is how we will drive down energy bills and make cold homes a thing of the past.
We recognise that we need to support households struggling with bills whilst we transition to clean power by 2030. This is why we delivered the Warm Home Discount to around 3 million eligible low-income households last winter. In February, we published a consultation on the expansion of the Warm Home Discount which would bring around 2.7 million households into the scheme and supporting a total of 6 million households. The consultation has now closed and the Department is evaluating the responses.
The Government is committed to ensuring that energy bills for non-domestic customers are affordable.
Legacy renewable policy costs, such as the Renewables Obligation (RO) and Feed-in Tariff (FiT) schemes, are now closed to new applicants but have brought forward the successful renewable electricity sector that we see today in the UK. This, in turn, is supporting our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 so we can reduce our reliance on international gas markets.
By driving investment in renewables, they have significantly lowered the cost of renewable electricity production over time, leading to a more affordable and sustainable energy future.
Ministers in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero have regular meetings with Energy UK on a range of important issues, including the cost of energy bills.
The Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently.
The Government has committed to improving the UK’s trade and investment relationship with the EU, and tackle unnecessary barriers to trade. Under the terms of the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), the UK Government and EU agreed to cooperate on carbon pricing and give serious consideration to linking respective emissions trading schemes (ETSs). Ahead of the UK-EU Summit on the 19th May, the UK Government is actively considering the case for linking ETSs. This does not prejudge the outcome of any potential discussions with the EU on ETS linking.
The Government plans to apply the UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism across the whole UK, including in NI. The UK will continue to work with international partners, including the EU, to ensure our approach is implemented in a way that works for businesses.
The EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism could only apply in Northern Ireland with the agreement of the UK and in line with the democratic safeguards of the Windsor Framework.
For goods moving from Northern Ireland into the EU, guidance is a matter for the European Commission and EU Member States. The UK have raised with the EU Commission the need for clarity on the practical implementation of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism for trade in electricity.
The EU Commission website is the most up to date source of information and guidance.
Under the terms of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), the UK Government and EU agreed to give serious consideration to linking our respective carbon pricing schemes and to cooperate on carbon pricing. As part of our reset with the EU the Government continues to explore all options to improve trade and investment.
The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is in an implementation period and applies to exports of electricity to the EU but not electricity for the UK market. The EU Commission has said that it intends to finalise the regulation via legislation ahead of the CBAM entering its definitive period.
The UK will continue to engage closely with the EU as it finalises the CBAM and will continue to raise the need for clarity on the practical implementation of the CBAM for trade in electricity, given the challenges involved.
Data centres can be significant sources of employment, both during construction and to operate and maintain the data centres once completed. These include highly specialised jobs across IT, engineering, cybersecurity, and support services. Data centres also indirectly support employment in other industries, particularly in tech and AI.
My Department has not made a specific estimate of the number of jobs that will be created due to the substantial potential investment in the UK by data centre developers but is actively monitoring the sector. TechUK have estimated that by 2035 there could be 40,200 additional jobs directly employed in data centre operational roles and 18,200 additional jobs directly employed in data centre construction roles over the period 2025–35.
Creating a safer online world is a priority for the government. Services regulated under the Online Safety Act must take action to tackle illegal pornographic content, including extreme pornography, which is a priority offence under the Act. Children will also be protected from pornographic content through the use of highly effective age assurance.
Government departments are also undertaking detailed work to consider how best to tackle the complex set of issues raised by Baroness Bertin’s Independent Pornography Review.
Creating a safer online world is a priority for the government. Services regulated under the Online Safety Act must take action to tackle illegal pornographic content, including extreme pornography, which is a priority offence under the Act. Children will also be protected from pornographic content through the use of highly effective age assurance.
Government departments are also undertaking detailed work to consider how best to tackle the complex set of issues raised by Baroness Bertin’s Independent Pornography Review.
Creating a safer online world is a priority for the government. Services regulated under the Online Safety Act must take action to tackle illegal pornographic content, including extreme pornography, which is a priority offence under the Act. Children will also be protected from pornographic content through the use of highly effective age assurance.
Government departments are also undertaking detailed work to consider how best to tackle the complex set of issues raised by Baroness Bertin’s Independent Pornography Review.
Artificial intelligence is the defining opportunity of our generation, and the Government is taking action to harness its economic benefits for UK citizens. As set out in the AI Opportunities Action Plan, we believe most AI systems should be regulated at the point of use, with our expert regulators best placed to do so. Departments are working proactively with regulators to provide clear strategic direction and support them on their AI capability needs. Through well-designed and implemented regulation, we can fuel fast, wide and safe development and adoption of AI.
The Government published the final report of the Independent Pornography Review on 27 February. The Review found violent pornography is common and easily available online. It is right that the government takes time to understand this complex, deeply important topic. A further update will be provided in due course.
The Online Safety Act requires services publishing or hosting user-generated pornographic content to prevent children from accessing it using highly effective age assurance. Extreme pornography is a priority offence under the Act, requiring services to proactively mitigate and remove this illegal content on their platforms.
According to the Essential Digital Skills Framework, media literacy-related skills, including understanding online risks, are essential for work. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has worked with FutureDotNow to analyse the benefits of essential digital skills for earnings and employability, with findings being published shortly.
The Digital Inclusion Action Plan outlines steps towards delivering digital inclusion and media literacy for everyone in the UK. The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review is also considering how young people will acquire the digital skills needed for future life, with the interim report highlighting the need for a renewed focus on media literacy.
The Independent Pornography Review is a wide-ranging and thorough piece of work which assessed the effectiveness of pornography legislation, regulation, and enforcement. The Review’s final report was published on the 27th of February 2025.
This is an important yet deeply complex topic. The findings of the Review continue to be assessed by the Government.
The Independent Pornography Review assessed the effectiveness of current pornography legislation, regulation and enforcement. The Review has now concluded, and the report was published on Thursday 27 of February 2025. It is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/creating-a-safer-world-the-challenge-of-regulating-online-pornography.
The government engages regularly with social media and search services and is clear that they should be taking action now to make their services safe for users.
Under the Online Safety Act, in-scope services must prevent all users from encountering illegal suicide and self-harm content, and children from legal content which encourages, promotes or provides instructions for suicide and self-harm.
The government are committed to continuing to engage with those with lived experience and keeping online safety policy under review and will take whatever steps are needed to protect the public.
The government engages regularly with social media and search services and is clear that they should be taking action now to make their services safe for users.
Under the Online Safety Act, in-scope services must prevent all users from encountering illegal suicide and self-harm content, and children from legal content which encourages, promotes or provides instructions for suicide and self-harm.
The government are committed to continuing to engage with those with lived experience and keeping online safety policy under review and will take whatever steps are needed to protect the public.
The Online Safety Act’s illegal content and, where relevant, child safety duties will apply to services of all sizes. In September 2024, a public exchange of letters between the Secretary of State and Ofcom’s CEO provided more information about the supervision taskforce. The taskforce is developing and delivering a workplan focusing on high priority themes (such as terror, hate and offences against women and girls) in small but risky services. Should such services choose not to engage and there is evidence of non-compliance, Ofcom will undertake enforcement action.
The Online Safety Act’s illegal content and, where relevant, child safety duties will apply to services of all sizes. In September 2024, a public exchange of letters between the Secretary of State and Ofcom’s CEO provided more information about the supervision taskforce. The taskforce is developing and delivering a workplan focusing on high priority themes (such as terror, hate and offences against women and girls) in small but risky services. Should such services choose not to engage and there is evidence of non-compliance, Ofcom will undertake enforcement action.
The government is clear all social media platforms have a responsibility to keep their users safe and not facilitate those seeking to sow division in our communities. This is why we are working at pace to implement the Online Safety Act.
During last summer’s unrest, the government focused on working with the platforms with the largest reach in the UK. This included referring content contributing to that disorder for platforms to assess and act on in line with their terms of service. We recognise however that the way platforms are used continues to evolve and so keep our approach under review.
The work of the Independent Pornography Review is ongoing and is an important area of interest to this government.
The Review is expected to finalise by early 2025, with publication of the report following shortly after this.
The impact of ‘catfishing’ can be devastating for victims. Under the Online Safety Act all in-scope services will need to protect users from illegal content and criminal behaviour, including communications offences such as the false communications offence.
In addition, those services that are likely to be accessed by children will need to take steps to protect child users from content which is harmful. Ofcom will have robust powers enforce to against companies who do not comply with their duties
The impact of ‘catfishing’ can be devastating for victims. Under the Online Safety Act all in-scope services will need to protect users from illegal content and criminal behaviour, including communications offences such as the false communications offence.
In addition, those services that are likely to be accessed by children will need to take steps to protect child users from content which is harmful. Ofcom will have robust powers enforce to against companies who do not comply with their duties