It’s time to kill the Online Safety Bill for good

The Online Safety Bill has been postponed. It should now be killed off for good. Not only is it bad for business, bad for free speech, and – by attacking encryption – bad for online safety, it now seems that there is a possibility, however remote, that the minister responsible for the bill doesn’t fully understand what it actually does.

After it was announced that the bill’s passage through parliament would be put on hold next week, leadership hopeful Kemi Badenoch welcomed the delay by describing the bill as being ‘in no fit state to become law’, adding that ‘we should not be legislating for hurt feelings.’ In response, up popped Boris ultra (and hopefully soon-to-be former) Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries, seething at the possible death of her only consequential piece of legislation.

‘Which part of the bill legislates for hurt feelings, Kem?’ asked Dorries. Well, I can answer that. It’s Part 10, ‘Communications Offences’, and in particular the subheading ‘Harmful communications offence’.