Campaigners are calling on members of the public to respond to a Government consultation on internet safety.A petition launched by Premier Christian Media Trust and the Safermedia charity called upon the Government to force internet service providers to make accessing pornograhy an adult-only opt-in service.
The petition was signed by more than 100,000 people.
Now Premier and Safermedia are asking the signatories to go one step further in their support by submitting a response to the consultation.
The consultation asks for views "on how parents and children can become better educated about how to minimise risks when online, but also to hear about the potential for technical solutions, and what can be done to address problems such as cyber-bullying".
The 10-week consultation was launched in June but the campaigners have criticised the timing, as it falls over the summer period when many families are on holiday.
They criticised the "awkward and confusing" wording of the consultation document.
There was also concern about the loss of time when the initial website was temporarily closed after the details of respondents were accidentally leaked.
Miranda Suit and Pippa Smith from Safermedia, commented: “Online porn violates our children’s minds and their innocence. We all have a responsibility to make time to respond to this Consultation. We must urge the Government to introduce network-level opt-in filters so that our children can surf the net far more safely.”
Peter Kerridge, CEO of the Premier Christian Media Trust and co- sponsors of the campaign, said: “Despite these two setbacks re. awkward wording of the consultation document and the leaking of private details, it is of even greater importance the public - particularly young people, to act now to influence the Government on matters of internet safety. Through our campaigning we have come into contact with many young people whose lives have been deeply affected by the easy access of pornography and other forms of harmful online content. The Government needs to hear from them, firsthand, about the harm this causes and do what is in everybody’s best interest by calling on internet service providers to adopt the opt-in option.”
Discussions are ongoing for a new Code of Practice for ISPs that will be implemented in the autumn.
The Government is reportedly in favour of the Code’s ‘Active Choice’ option, which places the onus on parental responsibility rather than ISPs.
The consultation closes on 6 September.
To help people navigate their way through the process more effectively, Premier and Safermedia have created guidance notes on the consultation document.
www.safetynet.org.uk/consultation