Government response to the Internet Report by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse: Covering letter (accessible version)
Published 10 November 2020
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Professor Alexis Jay OBE
Chair, Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
PO Box 72289
London
SW1P 9LF
9 November 2020
Dear Alexis,
IICSA Report: The Internet Investigation Report
I am grateful to you and the panel members for the comprehensive Internet Investigation report, which reviewed institutional responses to child sexual abuse facilitated by the internet. I am pleased to enclose a copy of the Government’s response to those recommendations, which we are publishing today.
We welcome the Inquiry’s scrutiny and we have considered the recommendations with great care. The report highlights appalling activity remains prevalent on an unacceptable scale. Tackling the horrors and growing threat of child sexual abuse facilitated by the internet is a top priority for this Government.
As we set out in our response to the recommendations, the Online Harms White Paper sets out Government’s plans for a world-leading package of measures to protect individual users, including children, from harmful activity online. These measures will include a new ‘duty of care’ on companies to improve online safety, to be overseen by an independent regulator. The full Government response will be published later this year and provides further details on the proposed regulations.
I would like to pay tribute to the victims and survivors who have come forward in this investigation to share their experiences of suffering online grooming and sexual abuse. We recognise that it takes a huge amount of courage. We owe it to them to ensure that children today are better protected on online platforms.
A copy of the Government’s response will be available at GOV.UK.
Victoria Atkins MP