Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) (Amendment) (No. 9) Regulations 2022

Marcus Fysh Excerpts

Monday 6th June 2022 General Committees

[Mr Marcus Fysh (Yeovil) (Con)]

I support attempts to reduce the amount of propaganda that is experienced, and obviously we do not want what is happening in Russia and Ukraine to continue, but I have a technical question about how this will work operationally.

New regulation 54A(1) talks about the provider of a social media service taking

“reasonable steps to prevent content”

from a “designated person” being experienced by someone in the UK. That is, in essence, what it is about. How does the Minister envisage that a social media provider might, technically, take reasonable steps to ascertain who the people providing content on its service are?

I wonder whether, as can sometimes happen, what is a well-intended type of thing could, in fact, create unintended consequences. For example, would a social media provider, given that it would find it very hard to pinpoint who, specifically, is doing what, just decide to say, “No content from Russia of any kind”? In order to be safe and not be fined by Ofcom, it might just choose not to accept any content or participation from an entire nation.

Might the Minister say a little about how that would operate technically, and whether we are going to be inadvertently requiring KYC—know your customer—or exclusion of data on a wholesale basis in order for a provider to try to comply with these regulations?

[The Chair]

The question is that the Committee has considered—[Interruption.] I am sorry; I call the Minister.