The Online Safety Bill could be contributing to an outright Tory revolt as MPs push to jail media bosses who fail to uphold the law.

As the bill stands, Ofcom, the telecommunications regulator, would have the power to levy significant fines if social media platforms are found to be in breach of the new law which is designed to protect those most vulnerable from harmful online content.

At least 36 Conservative MPs are pushing to extend the powers of the bill to allow OfCom to imprison social media bosses if they are found in breach of the safety laws.

The Labour Party has confirmed they would support the policy, and 10 Downing Street said they will “carefully consider” the proposed amendment.

Originally, the Online Safety Bill called for the imprisonment of social media owners found in breach of the law.

Under three different Prime Ministers, however, the Bill has transformed dramatically as the UK grapples with social media content regulations.

The bill is designed to protect users from harmful contnet shared on the internent, and will hold platforms responsible for not moderating and removing content that is deemed ‘harmful.’ Examples of harmful content would include anything promoting self-harm, sexual violence, or facilitating suicide.

While Ofcom has the power to fine a company yo to 10% of their global turnover, they can only prosecute executives if they refuse to cooperate with an investigation.

Conservative and Labour MPs alike are calling for stronger regulatory powers, with the new amendment signed by 37 MPs.

Previous amendments to the bill also frustrated many MPs, with Labour Shadow Culture Secretary Lucy Powell calling the bill ‘toothless’ after the ‘legal but harmful’ clause was removed.

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The bills’s triple shield proposal has met with controversy as it allows platforms to moderate content based on their own terms, without any formal definition of ‘harmful’ content made by the government.

Set to return to Parliament next Tuesday (17 January 2023), the Conservative government could face a major upheaval in the Commons if the rebellious MPs join forces with Labour to again amend the bill.

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