Joint statement: Online Safety Bill

English football welcomes the announcement of the Online Safety Bill in today’s Queen’s Speech and we are calling for it to be enacted in legislation as soon as possible.

Social media companies must be held to account for protecting their users. It is therefore vital that any legislative and regulatory frameworks are robust and effective in requiring social media companies to do more to prevent, detect and remove discriminatory abuse from their platforms. This opportunity must be seized to ensure that individuals and communities are protected from toxic online abuse.

The recent boycott of social media, which was led by English football and supported by other sports, international governing bodies, businesses, charities and individuals worldwide, showed that we have collectively had enough. Today’s announcement represents progress, and we welcome the opportunity to continue working with Government to ensure measures are put in place as quickly as possible.

We urge social media companies to recognise the impact of their inaction and to take moral responsibility by acting now to address abuse on their platforms before regulation is in place.

Joint statement by (alphabetical order):

• EFL
• FA
• FSA
• Kick It Out
• LMA
• Premier League
• PFA
• PGMOL
• Women’s Championship
• Women In Football
• WSL

How can fans report online abuse? Find out more here…