Online Safety Bill

Lord Weir of Ballyholme Excerpts

2nd reading
Wednesday 1st February 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Weir of Ballyholme (DUP)]

My Lords, I also welcome this belated Bill, particularly its protections for children. All of us, I think, very sadly over the last number of years, have witnessed the outcome of inquiries into a litany of horrific crimes against children, through decades of historic institutional abuse. That abuse, sadly, was facilitated by inaction. That might have been motivated by ignorance and complacency rather than by being complicit, but nevertheless society as a whole let down those generations of children. We must make sure that history does not repeat itself.

I am the first to admit that the internet can be a great tool for value. We saw during the recent pandemic, for example, the contribution that the internet was able to make to education, in a way that would have been inconceivable a decade ago. But there is also no doubt that there is a very negative side to the internet, through body-shaming, trolling, misogyny, anti-Semitism, racism and incitement to violence—among many other things—and most particularly, the damage that occurs to our young people and the tragic loss of life in cases such as Molly Russell and others. That is why I particularly support the amendments that will be brought forward by the noble Baroness, Lady Kidron, and by the noble Lord, Lord Bethell.

We know that early exposure to pornography, particularly violent pornography, leads to degrading and destructive attitudes and actions, especially towards women, as has been highlighted by the Government themselves in their reports on violence against women and girls. Therefore, we must take definitive action to be able to counteract that.

As the noble Lord, Lord Bethell, has indicated, there are three particular areas on which we have to intervene when it comes to amendments. First, we need robust age verification, both for users and—as has been highlighted by a previous speaker—for those involved in the porn industry itself and are producing it. We know that the porn industry, and many within it, are not exactly protective of those whom they employ, and we must make sure that everything is done to protect everyone who is underage.

Secondly, I believe that, in regulations, we need to have what is clear and consistent: consistent in a single definition of pornography; consistent that what is illegal offline is mirrored by what is illegal online; and consistent in ensuring that high standards apply across all platforms. I join with a number of speakers today who have been highly critical of large, conglomerate tech companies and the approach that they take, but that should not blind us to the fact that some of the vilest imagery, some of the vilest abuse and some of the vilest actions happen on small platforms as well. We must make sure that we hold all platforms equally to a high standard.

Thirdly, we must ensure, particularly in terms of age verification, that we see swift and early implementation. I agree that, in terms of the detail of regulation, Ofcom is best placed to be able to deliver that. However, we also know that the full package of regulations that Ofcom will produce might be three, four or five years away. We cannot allow that level of destruction to take place in the meantime. That means, particularly in regard to age verification, that we need to see that early and swift intervention.

In conclusion, I think we have a good Bill, but it could be a better Bill. Collectively, we must ensure that it is the best Bill that is possible, so that we do not face a situation in which, for families and for children—either of the current generation or of future ones—we let them down in the way that the previous generations have been let down.