Let me be clear, I want kids to be safe online as much as anyone. But the government’s shiny new Online Safety Act isn’t about safety. It’s about control, censorship, and treating every law‑abiding citizen like a criminal “just in case”.
Under this Act, tech companies will be forced to scan your private messages for “harmful” content. Harmful to who? Harmful how? Nobody can say. This is the digital equivalent of the Post Office steaming open every single letter you post. Privacy? Forget it.
Then we have the magic age‑verification schemes. Fancy handing over your passport or a face scan just to watch a YouTube video? The government thinks you will. They’re basically creating the biggest honey‑pot of personal data ever, and we all know how well that ends, you only need to look at the recent revelations by the MOD and their data leaks (hint: hackers, leaks, identity theft).
And what about free speech? Platforms will face eye watering fines if they don’t remove “harmful” content, so they’ll just delete anything remotely controversial. Congratulations, your opinions are now at the mercy of a panicked moderator in California.
Here’s the kicker: Labour want to give 16‑year‑olds the vote, apparently old enough to decide the future of the country. But under this Act, those same 16‑year‑olds are “children” who can’t even decide what content they can read online. Yet another Labour double standard, if you’re old enough to shape the nation, you’re old enough to have your rights respected.
This law doesn’t make anyone safer. It pushes people onto VPNs and underground platforms. It makes private conversations less secure. It gives Whitehall the keys to what you’re allowed to say online.
We can protect children without turning the internet into a Ministry of Truth. Because once you give Big Brother Wi‑Fi access, he’s not logging out.
