Parliamentary Search

Written question asked by Shivani Raja (Conservative) on Friday, 28 August 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 2 September 2026. It was answered by Ian Murray (Labour) on Monday, 28 September 2026 on behalf of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

Hate Crime: Social Media

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential implications for her policies of the findings of the Centre for Young Lives report on 'looksmaxxing'; and what steps she is taking to counter the progression of young men from body image forums into radicalised misogynistic networks.

Answer

This Government is committed to addressing the challenges young men face online and the development of radicalised misogynistic networks. The Online Safety Act requires platforms to take responsibility for the safety of their users by tackling illegal content and protect children from harmful content including misogynistic content. The Government has built on the OSA and gone further in announcing its intention to restrict social media companies from providing services to under-16s.

The Government has also launched its "You Won't Know Until You Ask" campaign to help parents and carers support children in developing critical thinking skills online and resilience to misleading, polarising or harmful content.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
22452
Session
2026-27
Subjects
Women Young people Radicalism Hate crime Social media
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk