Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether incorrect information on social media influenced the outcome of the referendum on the UK's membership of the EU.

The Government has made no specific assessment of this. The EU referendum was a democratic exercise, run under the rules on campaigning as set out in the European Union Referendum Act 2015. The Government believes that the result of the referendum should be respected and delivered.

The Government recognises the problems caused by misleading and false information online more broadly, and we take the security and integrity of our democratic processes very seriously.

The Government’s manifesto includes a commitment to take steps to protect the reliability and objectivity of information that is essential to our democracy and a free, independent press. Therefore we are working with the broadcast and press sectors, social media and the broader tech industry, academics and international partner governments to ensure we have a news environment where accurate content can prevail. We are also working to improve the critical analysis and digital literacy skills of the wider population.