The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) are calling for a new law to make social networks safer for children. NSPCC research showed that an average of 1 child per primary school class surveyed had been sent or shown a naked or semi-naked image by an adult online. The organisation are calling for a statutory regulation so that social networks have a legal duty to protect every child from abuse and grooming.
This week, the NSPCC launched their campaign ‘Wild West Web’ in Parliament. Eastleigh MP and Minister for Youth at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Mims Davies MP, joined colleagues including Minister for Digital and the Creative Industries, Margot James MP, at the Parliamentary event.
Commenting afterwards, Eastleigh MP Mims Davies said:
“Social media can be such a great tool to share videos and pictures with your nearest and dearest, and keep in touch with friends and family members, but too many are abusing the system.
“It is shocking to hear that on average, 10 online grooming offences are recorded every single day by the police in the UK. That’s why as the Member of Parliament for Eastleigh, I’m supporting the #WildWestWeb campaign.
“This is a subject that many of my constituents have written in about to express their concerns. It is key that we tackle social network regulation and do everything in our power to keep children safe on the internet by closing the gap on internet regulation. It’s time we put a stop to online abuse.”