Fact check: Social media proposal is not Government policy

The Bill has gone through its first reading in the House of Lords. (Aaron Chown/PA) - (PA Wire)

Social media posts made various claims that the Government was going pass a new social media Bill.

In one example it was claimed the Government is “about to give Ofcom the power to shut down social media & take away our speech.”

Another said: “Labour are going to give Ofcom the power to shut down social media in Britain.”

Evaluation

The Bill in question was introduced in the House of Lords by a Liberal Democrat peer. It has only just started its journey through the Lords and is not Government policy.

The facts

The process

The Social Media Platforms (Ofcom Licensing) Bill is a private members’ Bill which has been introduced in the House of Lords. A screenshot of the Bill was included in the social media posts.

It was sponsored by Baroness Floella Benjamin, a Liberal Democrat. It went through its first reading in the House of Lords on September 7 and is waiting for further progress through the Lords.

A first reading is the first stage of the process by which a Bill can become law, but it is generally considered a formality and is not debated.

In the second reading, members of the Lords debate the purpose of the Bill.

The Bill’s contents

The Bill would force anyone wanting to operate a social media site which is available to UK users to be licensed by Ofcom.

There are several conditions for getting a licence in this Bill.

They include taking reasonable steps to ensure all content on the platform complies with UK law; is not “materially harmful” to users or the public interest; and does not incite criminal conduct or hatred.

The Bill also says there should also be systems in place to minimise the spread of bad information and users should be “provided with transparent information concerning the identity and authenticity of persons publishing content on its social media platform.”

The Bill would give Ofcom the power to revoke a licence. If it does so it can also apply to a court to require internet service providers to block access to the site in question.

Links

First post on X (archived)

Second post on X (archived)

UK Parliament – Social Media Platforms (Ofcom Licensing) Bill (archived)

UK Parliament – First reading (archived)

UK Parliament – Full Bill (archived)