WEC Chair urges Ministers to act on non-consensual intimate image abuse
24 May 2024
The Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee Rt Hon Caroline Nokes has written to Cabinet ministers and Ofcom following the conclusion of WEC’s inquiry into non-consensual intimate image abuse.
This follows the announcement by the Prime Minister of a General Election on July 4 which precludes publication of the Committee’s planned report.
Chair's quote
In her letter the WEC Chair warned of the “inadequacies in the current legislative framework” in relation to so-called ‘revenge porn’ which “can have life changing and life-threatening consequences”.
She said: “During our inquiry, we met with multiple victims of non-consensual intimate image abuse, including campaigner, broadcaster and TV personality Georgia Harrison who gave formal evidence to the Committee. The people we spoke to, and those who provided us with written testimony, described the far-reaching impact that the sharing of non-consensual images online has had and continues to have on their lives, their confidence and their relationships.”
She added: “NCII content needs to be treated with the same severity as child abuse material, we need legal provisions to allow for the rapid blocking of known NCII content, akin to how child exploitation content is handled, facilitating more immediate and effective responses.
“I urge the next Government and Ofcom, as regulator, to take the steps necessary to require platforms remove non-consensual intimate image content and for them to do so as soon as it is reported or discovered to prevent its spread, and for internet service providers to block it.”
She went on: “I urge the Ministry of Justice to extend the scope of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme to allow claims from victims of sexual offences perpetrated online, specifically non-consensual intimate image abuse.”
Further information
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