Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to Q811 of the oral evidence given by the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology to the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee on 13 December 2023, HC 38, what steps she is taking to work with social media companies to deploy tools to help protect democratic processes.

We are working extensively across Government to ensure we are ready to rapidly respond to any threats to our democratic processes, through our Defending Democracy Taskforce and dedicated government teams. The threat to democracy from AI was discussed at the AI Safety Summit in November 2023, reinforcing the Government’s commitment to international collaboration on this issue.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology works closely with social media platforms to encourage them to put in place policies that are fit for purpose, consistently enforced, and respect freedom of expression. Implementation of the Online Safety Act will make a significant difference here.