Source · Select Committees · Science, Innovation and Technology Committee
Recommendation 18
18
Rejected
Submit annual report to Parliament on the state of online misinformation trends.
Recommendation
The broad scale—and serious impact—of misinformation online requires greater transparency and accountability from the government. In line with our Principle 1, the government should submit an annual report to Parliament on the state of misinformation online, tracking trends and issues from the year, and setting out successes and failures in addressing them. (Recommendation, Paragraph 47)
Government Response Summary
The government rejects the recommendation for an annual report on misinformation, citing national security concerns that such a report would expose vulnerabilities and hinder operations. They state they already provide updates through existing parliamentary channels.
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government
Rejected
The government agrees that routine scrutiny and accountability are important and continues to provide regular updates on this work through existing parliamentary channels, such as questions in the House and Ministerial appearances before relevant Select Committees. This serves to ensure routine scrutiny and proportionality of the government’s response to misinformation, including where it concerns the UK’s national security. Given the government’s focus on UK national security, an annual report on the online information environment and impact of UK-led mitigations would risk exposing vulnerabilities and could hinder future operations.