Jersey could seek alignment with EU laws to regulate social media

Thursday 25 April 2024

The government is looking at ways to regulate harmful content shared on platforms like Snapchat, Facebook and TikTok by aligning with EU laws.

Home Affairs Minister Mary Le Hegarat said in a Children, Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel this week that officers were considering regulation of online platforms via the European Commission’s Digital Services Act.

This comes after panel chair Deputy Catherine Curtis expressed her "disappointment" when it emerged that Economic Development Minister Kirsten Morel had turned down Parliament's offer to extend the UK Online Safety Act to Jersey with a 'Permissive Extent Clause'.

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Secret Snapchat accounts sharing compromising images of children drove Lily to try to take her own life when she was just 13… Years later, she has spoken of her horror at learning this is still happening.

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Pictured: Serious online dangers for children were highlighted by a recent investigation by Express.

At the time, Children's Minister Richard Vibert explained that Jersey could instead develop its own legislation more suited to the island.

Deputy Curtis then sought in the scrutiny hearing to "seek reassurances about what is planned to take [the Online Safety Act]'s place".

Deputy Le Hegarat reiterated her commitment to "pursuing new legislation in relation to online safety".

Pictured: Deputy Catherine Curtis recently expressed her “disappointment” that the Government turned down Parliament's offer to extend the UK Online Safety Act to the island.

She said: "Officers are exploring options to introduce the regulation of online platforms through alignment with European Commission's Digital Services Act."

The Digital Services Act 2022, which updated the Electronic Commerce Directive 2000, is intended to govern the content moderation practices of social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter), TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, and others.

Its main goal is to prevent illegal and harmful activities online and the spread of disinformation, while ensuring user safety, protecting fundamental rights, and creating a fair and open online platform environment.

Deputy Le Hegarat added that she planned to criminalise cyber-flashing and the use of deep fakes through amendments to the Sexual Offences (Jersey) Law 2018, and that cyber-stalking would be criminalised under the new stalking offence, as outlined previously in her plan to tackle violence against women and girls.

Pictured: Home Affairs Minister Mary Le Hegarat reiterated her commitment to "pursuing new legislation in relation to online safety".

She explained: "We need to be aware that sometimes we don't take on UK legislation, and it is better for us to see what parts of that legislation are more relevant to us.

"Our work to implement the recommendations in the Violence Against Women and Girls report will result in legislative developments similar to those brought in by the Online Safety Act anyway."

But Deputy Curtis said she was concerned that children in Jersey would "lose out" on protections granted to other children in the UK.

This follows a flurry of social media activity from parents concerned about anonymous Snapchat accounts sharing compromising content of children and young people.

A Jersey student, who says cyberbullying once drove her to contemplate suicide, shared her "mortifying" experience of harmful social media groups with Express.

 Children “as young as seven” in unsavoury Snapchat group