The real harm in the Online Harms Bill

Following the killing of Sir David Amess, MPs were quick to point to the ‘corrosive space’ provided by social media, the ‘toxic’ conduct of politics, and the general phenomenon of people being cruel to them online.

Of course our parliamentary representatives don’t deserve to face waves of abuse for doing their jobs. They shouldn’t receive racial abuse, or threats of violence, or even simple insults for doing their jobs. This goes without saying for any worker, whether serving customers in a supermarket, helping commuters with their tickets, or indeed governing the country.

But it is also worth noting that — as those examples suggest — the job of an MP is not quite like any other. They are required to hold a public profile, a willingness to stand for controversial values, and to defend decisions that — at times — may quite literally be over matters of life and death.