Government coordination to online harms

WQ.198/2026

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE CHIEF MINISTER

BY DEPUTY V. LI OF ST. HELIER NORTH
QUESTION SUBMITTED ON MONDAY 5th OCTOBER 2026 ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON MONDAY 12th OCTOBER 2026

Question

"In relation to the Government's response to online harms will the Chief Minister advise –

1. the current membership and any updates that have been made to the published terms of reference of the Online Safety Policy Ministerial Group, as well as the dates on which it has met since the 2026 election, and any decisions or outputs it has agreed;
2. the current status and the funding allocated in 2027 for each of the following –
   1. the legislative gap analysis being undertaken by the Law Commission;
   2. the proposed legislation to require the removal of harmful online content;
   3. the consultation on network-level filtering; and
   4. any legislative amendments to be lodged to safeguard children from online harms;
3. which of the items in (b) will be completed, and which will result in legislation being lodged, before the end of 2027; and
4. how the work in (b) interacts with the draft Cyber Security Policy Framework 2025-2040, and whether that Framework includes any measures specific to children's online safety?"

Answer

The proposed Common Strategic Policy 2026-2030 (CSP) was lodged on 29th September and contains an action to strengthen online safety and cyber protection for children and young people. As with other actions in the CSP, a work programme will now be developed with oversight from the Online Safety Policy Ministerial Group.

1. The current members of the new Online Safety Policy Ministerial Group are the Minister for Children  and  Families  (Chair),  Minister  for  Education  and   Li felong  Learning,  Minister  for Economic Development, Minister for Justice and Home Affairs and the Minister for Heal th and Social Care. The Minister for External Relations has been added for this term of office.

The Terms of Reference have been updated to strengthen the group's role in driving policy development and implementation. It will be published shortly. The inaugural meeting was held on 7th September, and further dates have been scheduled for the remainder of the year.

1. The legislative gap analysis by the Jersey Law Commission remains on schedule for completion later in 2027. The current cost estimate is up to £30,000.
2. Law drafting instructions have been provided to the Law Drafting Office and drafting work is under way, utilising existing resources, with consultation to follow in 2027.
3. The public consultation on network-level filtering will form part of a wider consultation at a later date on a wider range of future measures, utilising existing resources.
4. Specific legislative reform relating to online harms will be informed by the ongoing work of the Ministerial group, and budget determined as needed

3. The Council of Ministers 2027 legislative programme is currently being finalised.
4. The Framework is economic strategy document which can build and retain trust across the economy. At the same, it also recognises the link between cyber security and online safety, including that "an appropriate and proportionate Island-wide response to online safety needs to be co-ordinated across Ministerial portfolios'.