Public health approach to online harm needed to protect children, expert says

Scotland should treat children’s online health as a public health issue, an expert from Ireland has said.

Jillian van Turnhout, who chaired Ireland’s online health taskforce, has urged Scottish ministers to use their powers relating to education, justice and health to help “secure a safe digital world” for children.

She also said governments at all levels must work together to “protect children from online harm”.

Van Turnhout is in Scotland on Wednesday to take part in a roundtable chaired by charity Children First, which will also involve children’s minister Natalie Don-Innes and community safety minister Siobhian Brown.

Speaking ahead of the meeting, Don-Innes pledged to work closely with UK ministers while also highlighting that an action plan covering devolved areas was forthcoming.

It comes as both the Scottish and UK Governments move to improve online safety, including via the criminalisation of creating sexual deepfakes and mulling a social media ban for under 16s.

Van Turnhout said: “The question now isn't whether to act, but how quickly and how comprehensively. This needs collaboration between governments at all levels, with every government committing to do everything they can to secure a safe digital world for children.

“In Scotland huge strides can be taken to protect children from online harm through areas that are in the Scottish Government's power, including education, justice and health.”

Ireland’s taskforce published its final report in December, setting out a series of recommendations on improving the digital environment for children and young people.

Those included improving digital literacy, enhancing regulations to ensure services are age-appropriate, and better enforcement of rules around inappropriate and harmful content.

Chief executive of Children First Mary Glasgow said: “Children are telling us they need adults to keep them safe, now. We must act on learning from the international community or risk being left behind in protecting children online. 

“Scotland has a strong track record in delivering holistic transformational public health responses to address some of the most pressing problems this country has faced. By quickly applying the learning from Ireland’s online health taskforce and building a consensus about how Scotland can tackle online harm we can keep children safe and preserve their childhoods.”

The charity published the results of a survey of young people last year which found 79 per cent were worried about seeing harmful content online and 78 per cent were anxious about the impact of social media.

It warned that children’s “basic right to safety is not being upheld”.

The Scottish Government announced its own online safety taskforce last year to identify what more could be done with devolved areas.

Don-Innes said: “Online regulation is reserved to the UK Government, and the Scottish Government have been clear in our calls for greater controls to reduce online harms to children, and our desire to work constructively with the UK Government to that end.  

“However, we are striving to improve and do more with the devolved powers we have – through education, community safety, and child protection.”