Lord Woolley of Woodford
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State of Extremism Report
Lord Woolley of Woodford Excerpts(1 month, 2 weeks ago)
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Lord Hanson of Flint (Lab)
My noble friend makes a very important point, and it is extremely important that we challenge the poison of online extremism that sometimes occurs. Existing legislation, particularly the Online Safety Act, empowers Ofcom to order the taking down of material that is damaging or extremist, and significant fines can be levied. However, we need to further examine how the online space is used to radicalise people, particularly those who, very often in their own bedrooms, are looking at such material, being sucked into an extremist pit—be it the right, Islamic extremism, or any other form of extremism—and groomed, in a sense, to undertake further activities. This is an extremely important issue that is difficult to challenge, but it is one the Government need to address.
Lord Woolley of Woodford (CB)
My Lords, I have some sympathy with the noble Baroness, Lady Uddin, when she talks about the importance of extremism criteria. How can we ensure objectivity and avoid politicisation of the term? In this House and the other House, we have seen the political winds propagating the false notion of two-tier policing, which is really divisive. Equally, in this House and the other House, we have heard politicians calling for more Black stop and search, when we are already disproportionately targeted. So criteria are important, and I urge the Minister to ensure objectivity in, and not the politicisation of, the process.
Lord Hanson of Flint (Lab)
The Government do not accept the principle of two-tier policing: policing should be done according to the circumstances that a police officer faces. This is not about two-tier policing. We have embedded across government the 2024 definition of extremism and engagement principles to ensure a consistent understanding of extremism, and we are updating the 2024 engagement principles to ensure that public bodies understand that issue in a proper and effective way.