Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to ensure the accountability of social media companies on online safety.

The Online Safety Act puts new duties on social media companies and search services, making them responsible for their users’ safety on their platforms.

The duties are now coming into effect, with platforms now being required by law to implement measures to reduce the risk of illegal content and activity on their services, with additional protections for children coming this Summer.

Ofcom has a range of strong enforcement powers to use if services fail to comply with the Act, including the ability to issue fines, and implement business disruption measures.