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Labour Calls for “Clear Legal Framework” to Prevent Cyber Bullying

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Labour’s Helen Goodman, shadow minister for culture, media and sport, has said that the UK needs better laws to tackle the problem of cyber bullying. She has called the current laws “confused” and called for “a clear legal framework” designed to deal with the problem.

Cyberbullying has made a number of headlines in recent years, particularly because it has led to a number of suicides of young people. For example, Hannah Smith was a 14 year old girl who was found hanged after suffering from cyber bullying on a discussion website.

Goodman suggested that making cyber bullying an offence should carry charges that mirror those applied to real-world harassment. She also said that, in her opinion, “it is the responsibility of legislators to do what only they can do.”

Speaking to technology executives and educationalists at a packed Westminster debate, Goodman went on to say: “We don’t want another voluntary response. We need to address this gap between online and real identity… and make cyber bullying a criminal offence.”

However, there were concerns from some delegates present that any move against cyber bullying should not be too heavy-handed. In particular, some people were worried that it would criminalise the behaviour of children when it would be better to teach them to change the way they act.

Goodman also pushed for additional steps to protect those who are under 18 from inappropriate content. She said: “We should be quite confident that we apply those norms built up over 50 years – what we see in the cinema, on television – to the net. Should we be putting 13 year olds into an adult space? They should not be treated as if they are 18.”

Advisor to David Cameron and government whip Claire Perry also spoke out on the issue of cyber bullying. She encouraged an approach that was non-partisan, and also praised the UK’s current efforts to provide an online environment that is safe for children. Specifically, she referred to the presence of warning pages, one-click filters put in place by internet service providers, and the blocking of pornography from public networks. Overall, Perry was insistent that the UK is “the most family-friendly place to go online.”

However, she admitted that some internet services would benefit from being legislated. She particularly highlighted the problem of user-generated sites where people are free to say or post what they want.


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