Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Home Office

Oral Answers to Questions

Julie Elliott Excerpts
Monday 28th September 2020

(4 years, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Mick Whitley Portrait Mick Whitley (Birkenhead) (Lab)
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What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on tackling online hate speech and extremism.

Julie Elliott Portrait Julie Elliott (Sunderland Central) (Lab)
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What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on tackling online hate speech and extremism.

Kate Osborne Portrait Kate Osborne (Jarrow) (Lab)
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What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on tackling online hate speech and extremism.

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James Brokenshire Portrait James Brokenshire
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The hon. Gentleman highlights an important point about the exploitation of the online world to attract the unwary and what that can lead to, which is why we are working with the companies concerned to see that content is removed. I highlight the online harms work, which will lead to a new regime to put new responsibilities on those companies to provide support in respect of the challenge of extremism and content that might not be illegal but profoundly is harmful.

Julie Elliott Portrait Julie Elliott
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A recent Home Affairs Committee session heard that Facebook had deleted 9.6 million posts about hate speech in the first quarter of this year. The Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Sub-Committee on which I serve has considered online disinformation during covid. What assessment has the Minister made of the links between hate speech and disinformation? Is there discussion between his Department and the DCMS?

James Brokenshire Portrait James Brokenshire
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As I indicated in response to the previous question, we are in discussion with the DCMS about these issues. It troubles me that sometimes this disinformation and these conspiracy theories can be used to galvanise more extremist behaviour. We are very alive to that in terms of working with our colleagues at the DCMS and in terms of our broader work in the Prevent space where this issue can move into terrorism. The issue of the extreme right-wing and far-right extremists seeking to exploit the online world and trap some quite young people is something we are very focused on and conscious of.