The much-anticipated Online Safety Bill has been put on hold by the UK government until after a new prime minister is appointed in September.
The bill had reached the report stage in the Houses of Parliament and it was meant to be discussed by MPs next week.
It will now be paused until MPs return from parliament’s summer recess – the BBC reported that “timetable pressures” have forced the bill to be rescheduled.
The Online Safety Bill aims to tackle many digital issues including online scams generated by social media users.
Kate Smith, head of pensions at Aegon, said: “It’s incredibly frustrating that the Online Safety Bill is facing yet more delays. This is a really important piece of legislation designed to help protect people from pension and investment fraud. It’s a wide-ranging complex piece of legislation, and it’s important it covers the right areas and has enough flexibilities to respond to the quick evolving nature of scams.
“But the bill has faced continual delays and amendments and has already had to be reintroduced in this year’s Queen’s Speech in May as parliament ran out of time to complete its progress from bill to act. It’s likely the delay will lead to yet another review of the bill’s content, but we’re hopeful that it will continue to include online financial fraud to provide that much-needed extra protection to consumers.”
‘Imperative’
Yvonne Collins, head of financial crime prevention at Phoenix Group, added: “Whilst there has been significant upheaval in government over the last week, it is imperative that the good progress being made on this important issue continues. We need to focus on what more can be done to protect the most vulnerable and ensure the UK is one of the safest places to be online.
“Financial fraud costs the UK hundreds of millions of pounds a year, damaging the lives of individuals, families and impacting our society. With a backdrop of increasing inflation and people having their finances squeezed, there are fresh opportunities for fraudsters to target those who are struggling, particularly through social media platforms. Action needs to be taken, and soon, which is why the Online Safety Bill is so important.
“We will continue to work with policymakers to ensure that this legislation will create an online environment that protects consumers and puts the onus on social media platforms to act more responsibly. At the same time, we remind consumers to stay alert to the risks of online fraud and always exercise caution when asked to share financial information online.”
Difference of opinion
Not every commentator is unhappy with the delay to the Online Safety Bill.
Victoria Hewson, head of regulatory affairs at think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs, said: “The Online Safety Bill delay — after concerns raised by leadership candidates — provides an ideal opportunity to reconsider this highly contentious legislation.
“The bill not only raises serious free speech issues but has also become complex and unmanageable. The latest amendments have made this situation even worse. The bill should either be abandoned entirely or stripped back to what is absolutely necessary to protect the safety of the most vulnerable.
“It should not seek to protect adults from all sorts of alleged harms at a cost of billions of pounds to businesses, and at the expense of freedom of expression.”
