UK online safety consultation ends with 80,000 responses

Bereaved parents who have lost children to harms linked to social media met with the Prime Minister on Tuesday, urging immediate government action to make online platforms safer for young people. The meeting coincided with the deadline for a major public consultation on the issue, which has drawn tens of thousands of responses.

Ian Russell, whose 14-year-old daughter Molly took her own life in 2017 after viewing harmful content online, said it is unacceptable that young people today still encounter the same dangers. He described his daughter as an ordinary teenager who clicked on a few wrong things, after which algorithms fed her increasingly harmful material. He believes that if she were alive, she would be campaigning for a safer digital world.

During the meeting, campaigners were told that protective measures should be announced in weeks, not months. The government’s consultation, titled “Growing Up In The Online World,” closed just before midnight on Tuesday. Officials received more than 80,000 submissions, including from over 40,000 parents and 13,000 young people. A range of potential measures is under consideration, from a ban on social media for under-16s to features...