Influencer culture: Lights, camera, inaction – DCMS Committee publishes Government response

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The Report, published in May, highlighted how the growth in the influencer market has exposed a number of regulatory gaps, particularly around advertising disclosure and protection for children, both as influencers and viewers. It called on the Government to strengthen employment law and advertising regulations.

The response welcomes or agrees with the intentions of a number of the Committee’s recommendations, including promoting young people’s social media literacy, developing a code of conduct for influencer marketing and strengthening the powers of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). It also states that the Department for Education is open to exploring legislative ways of improving employment protection for child influencers.

Chair's comments

Chair of the DCMS Committee Julian Knight MP said:

“The response is a welcome acknowledgement of the compelling need to address the gaps in child safety provisions and advertising regulation that have been exposed by the rapid rise in influencer culture. While it makes all the right noises on developing digital literacy, strengthening advertising enforcement and bolstering child employment protection, the Government must now follow through in the Online Safety Bill and beyond to ensure they deliver on the pledge to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online.”

The responses from the CMA and the ASA were published in July.

Further information

• Inquiry: Influencer culture
• Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee
• About Parliament: Select committees
• Visiting Parliament: Watch committees

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