The emergence of a free and open internet was one of the greatest achievements of liberal democracies. The creation of a decentralised web allowed ordinary citizens in countries all over the world to share and receive information. Now, fears about crime and moral panics about disinformation mean that many liberal democracies are making the web a smaller place for everyone.
On Wednesday, the Government published its Online Safety Bill, a piece of legislation designed to make the UK ‘the safest place in the world to go online, and the best place to start and grow a digital business.’ Omitted from this description is that the proposed Bill would also make the UK a world leader amongst democracies when it comes to censorship and state control.
The legislation forces large social media companies to act on any content which risks ‘having, or indirectly having, a significant adverse physical or psychological impact on an adult.’
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