Dear supporter,
We give thanks to God that the Government has listened to many of our concerns about its Online Safety Bill and removed the most worrying parts. Your prayers, and your letters to MPs, have made a difference.
The section on censoring legal content deemed ‘harmful to adults’ is to be deleted. So too is the troubling ‘harmful communications’ offence. The vague wording of these threatened free speech. We also welcome moves to expand and strengthen some of the provisions for protecting children. There is more to do here but it is a good start.
While there is a lot to be thankful for, we are concerned about a new requirement to help users filter out ‘incitement to hatred’. Again, such wording is vague. Many of those who oppose Christian truth routinely claim disagreement is ‘hatred’. My colleague, Simon Calvert was able to raise this point directly with the Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan yesterday.
It is not yet clear whether content expressing mainstream Christian views on marriage, sexual ethics and gender for example, will fall foul of this proposal. The Bill returns to the House of Commons next week and is expected to go to the House of Lords in the New Year. We will scrutinise the wording of the Government amendments very closely and keep you informed.
Please pray for us as we continue to push for a law which better protects children whilst ensuring that what is free to say on the street remains free to say online.
