Skip to Primary Navigation

House of Lords statement signals retreat in Online Safety Bill privacy row

Chamber of the House of Lords
Photo: Dan Kitwood – WPA Pool/Getty Images

Clash with tech companies averted, but worries remain that threat to privacy has not gone away.

The UK government appears to have back-pedalled on controversial provisions in its proposed Online Safety Bill that critics said posed a serious threat to privacy.

Clauses tabled in the Bill, which has been undergoing scrutiny in the country’s second chamber, would have forced messaging apps to access users’ private messages

Get full access, free for a month

Start your 28-day free trial to continue reading and access
all content on GRIP – no payment details required.

What’s included:

  • Every new article, plus our 5,000+ archive
  • Daily regulatory insight and guidance
  • Exclusive interviews and in-depth analysis
  • Coverage of industry-leading events and conferences
  • All podcasts and videos, featuring industry experts
  • The full set of Rules Navigator tools
  • An ad-free experience