Mind calls on UK government to urgently introduce the Online Safety Bill in wake of Molly Russell inquest
A coroner has ruled that social media was a factor in 14 year old Molly Russell’s death. Molly Russell died five years ago after viewing distressing content online related to depression, suicide and self-harm.
Vicki Nash, Associate Director of Policy, Campaigns and Public Affairs at Mind said:
“After almost five years, Molly Russell’s loved ones finally have some answers to the factors that contributed to her tragic death, including social media. Nothing will bring her back, but today’s ruling should at the very least be a huge wake up call for the UK government and social media platforms on action needed which has the potential to prevent future deaths.
“Mind is one of many campaigners and organisations urging the UK government to bring back the online safety bill to Parliament and hold tech companies accountable when it comes to putting the safety of children first. We want the UK government to work with social media platforms such as Meta to make sure any mechanisms to stop harmful content are sophisticated enough to allow effective peer support while tackling the sinister and harmful content that can encourage self-harm or suicide. We also want to see the UK government urgently examine ways to address some of the most harmful content that often appears on smaller websites, outside the larger social media platforms."
