Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will take steps to prevent false accusations being made about people online.

Under the Online Safety Act, companies will be forced to take action against illegal content and abuse online including illegal misinformation and disinformation. The false communications offence was also introduced by the Act in January this year. The offence captures communications where the sender knows information to be false but sends it intending to cause harm, without reasonable excuse. This offence carries a maximum penalty of 51 weeks’ imprisonment, or a fine (or both).