Repeal the Online Safety Act – 550k Signatures and Debate Outcome

A UK Parliament petition calling for the repeal of the Online Safety Act 2023 gathered more than half a million signatures, triggering a parliamentary debate in December 2025. The petition, numbered 722903, closed on 22 October 2025 after attracting significant public attention amid ongoing discussions about online safety regulation, free expression, and the responsibilities of digital platforms. While the government has rejected calls for repeal, the campaign highlighted deep divisions over how the legislation should be implemented and enforced.

The Online Safety Act became law in October 2023, establishing a framework requiring social media platforms and other in-scope services to assess and mitigate risks associated with illegal content and material harmful to children. Ofcom was appointed as the regulator responsible for overseeing compliance, with rules tailored to the size and risk profile of individual services. Supporters argue the legislation provides essential protections, particularly for vulnerable users, while critics contend that compliance requirements place unreasonable burdens on smaller operators and risk undermining free speech.

The petition’s passage through Parliament demonstrated how public pressure can force political attention on complex regulatory matters. With over 550,000 signatures, the campaign ranked among the most prominent digital rights petitions in UK history. However, the government’s formal response maintained that repeal remained off the table, pointing instead to ongoing work by Ofcom to ensure proportionate implementation of the Act’s provisions.

What is the Repeal the Online Safety Act Petition?

The petition titled “Repeal the Online Safety Act” was submitted to the UK Parliament petitions website and called on the government to scrap the legislation entirely. Organisers argued that the Act’s scope was overly broad, potentially forcing small community websites and hobbyist forums to shut down due to compliance costs that were unfeasible for low-risk platforms. Examples cited in the petition included forums dedicated to trains, football, video games, and pet care.

Key Insights on the Repeal Push

• The petition exceeded the 100,000 signature threshold required to secure a parliamentary debate, demonstrating substantial public interest in the issue
• By October 2025, the campaign had gathered more than 400,000 signatures before ultimately reaching 550,137
• Civil society organisations including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Open Rights Group, Big Brother Watch, and Index on Censorship issued a joint briefing ahead of the parliamentary debate
• The petition’s closure placed it among the largest digital rights-related petitions submitted to the UK Parliament
• Government response emphasised that Ofcom would tailor rules according to service size and risk, arguing this approach balanced safety with proportionality
• Critics during the debate focused on refinement rather than outright repeal, calling for clearer definitions and stronger free expression protections

What Happened in the Repeal the Online Safety Act Debate?

The parliamentary debate took place on 15 December 2025, convened after the petition crossed the signature threshold that mandates parliamentary consideration. The session was opened by MP Lewis Atkinson, with a government minister responding on behalf of the administration. The debate reflected the broader tensions inherent in balancing online safety with free expression concerns.

Arguments for Retaining the Act

Supporters of the legislation during the debate pointed to evidence of online harms affecting children and vulnerable users. Statistics cited included findings that one in five children aged between 10 and 15 had messaged strangers online, alongside data showing more than 9,000 online-linked child abuse cases recorded during 2022-23. Proponents argued the Act provided necessary tools to address extremism, disinformation, hate speech, and foreign influence operations targeting UK users.

Arguments for Reform or Repeal

Critics who participated in the debate largely stopped short of demanding complete repeal, instead calling for targeted reforms. Their concerns centred on several key areas: the need for clearer definitions of harmful content, improved age verification rules, stronger protections for free expression as explicitly required for large platforms, and mechanisms to prevent over-removal of legitimate content. Some speakers highlighted the practical impact on community websites and smaller operators who faced disproportionate compliance burdens.

What is the Government Response to Repeal the Online Safety Act?

The government’s formal response to the petition, issued on 28 July 2025, made clear that repeal was not under consideration. Officials emphasised that the Online Safety Act was designed with proportionality at its core, with Ofcom tasked with tailoring rules according to the size and risk profile of individual services. The response highlighted protections for users from serious harms including child sexual exploitation while maintaining that low-risk operations would not face excessive regulatory requirements.

Following the December 2025 debate, the government maintained its position, indicating continued commitment to implementation through Ofcom. The administration argued that the regulatory framework allowed for flexibility, with larger platforms facing more stringent requirements than smaller community websites. Ministers pointed to ongoing work by Ofcom to develop guidance and codes of practice that would operationalise the proportionality principle.

Labour, which formed the government after the 2024 general election, has consistently supported the Online Safety Act as legislation that delivers meaningful protections for users, particularly children. No indication has been given of policy changes that would alter the implementation trajectory, though critics note that the practical effects of the legislation on smaller operators remain to be fully assessed.

What Does Repeal the Online Safety Act Mean?

Understanding what repeal would entail requires examining both the scope of the Online Safety Act and the regulatory architecture it established. The Act, which received Royal Assent on 26 October 2023, introduced comprehensive requirements for in-scope services to identify, assess, and mitigate risks associated with illegal content and content harmful to children. Illegal content under the legislation includes terrorism, child sexual abuse material, and drug-related content, while child-harmful content encompasses pornography and material promoting suicide.

Repeal would eliminate these requirements entirely, removing the statutory obligations placed on platforms and transferring responsibility back to existing frameworks under communications law. The government’s position is that such a step would leave users, particularly children, exposed to harms that the Act was specifically designed to address. Proponents of repeal argue that alternative approaches could achieve safety objectives without the compliance burdens and free expression risks they associate with the current legislation.

Timeline of the Repeal the Online Safety Act Petition

The progression of the petition from launch through to parliamentary debate spanned several months of intensifying public engagement. Below is a chronology of key events in the petition’s history and the surrounding legislative developments.

1. 26 October 2023 — The Online Safety Act 2023 received Royal Assent, becoming law in the United Kingdom
2. Petition Launch — The repeal petition was launched on the UK Parliament petitions website, beginning its collection of public signatures
3. Late July 2025 — Key provisions of the Act, including age verification requirements, took effect; downloads of virtual private network services increased notably
4. 28 July 2025 — The government issued its formal response rejecting the call for repeal
5. October 2025 — The petition crossed the 400,000 signature mark during the final weeks of collection
6. 22 October 2025 — The petition officially closed after collecting 550,137 signatures
7. 11 December 2025 — Civil society organisations published a joint briefing urging reform or repeal ahead of the parliamentary debate
8. 15 December 2025 — The Petitions Committee held the parliamentary debate on the petition

Repeal Certainty: Current Status

The question of whether the Online Safety Act will be repealed, substantially amended, or maintained in its current form remains a point of ongoing political discussion. Several factors shape the current landscape.

Context: Why Repeal the Online Safety Act?

The campaign for repeal emerged from concerns about the practical effects of the legislation on digital spaces beyond major social media platforms. Petitioners and supporting organisations argued that the compliance requirements, while potentially manageable for large technology companies, posed existential risks for smaller community websites and non-profit organisations operating online forums.

The joint briefing submitted by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Open Rights Group, Big Brother Watch, and Index on Censorship outlined several specific concerns. These included threats to privacy through age assurance mechanisms, the potential for algorithmic discrimination via facial verification systems, and barriers that could prevent users without formal identification from accessing online services. The groups maintained that their opposition was not anti-safety but rather pro-balanced legislation that respected fundamental rights alongside protective measures.

Post-implementation reports indicated that some organisations had already begun struggling with website compliance requirements, while users experienced access restrictions linked to age verification measures. The removal of content that platforms deemed potentially harmful but which critics argued was legitimate expression also featured in complaints about the Act’s effects. These practical concerns animated the petition campaign and contributed to its significant signature total.

Key Quotes and Sources

Multiple organisations and official bodies have contributed to the public record on this issue, providing documented positions and evidence for public consideration.

“The government has no plans to repeal the Online Safety Act. The Act was designed with proportionality at its heart, and Ofcom will tailor rules to the size and risk of services, protecting users from serious harms while ensuring that low-risk businesses and organisations are not unfairly burdened.”

— Government response to petition 722903, published 28 July 2025

“We are not anti-safety. We are pro-balanced law that respects rights alongside protection. The Online Safety Act in its current form threatens civil society, free expression, and political engagement.”

— Joint briefing by EFF, Open Rights Group, Big Brother Watch, and Index on Censorship, December 2025

Primary sources for this article include the official petition page on Parliament.uk, transcripts and recordings of the parliamentary debate, the government’s formal response to the petition, and documented positions from civil society organisations. The full text of the Online Safety Act 2023 is available on legislation.gov.uk, providing the authoritative legislative basis for the regulatory framework.

What’s Next for Online Safety Act 2025?

The Online Safety Act continues to be implemented under Ofcom’s supervision, with the regulator developing codes of practice and guidance for affected services. The petition’s failure to secure repeal has not diminished ongoing discussions about how the legislation operates in practice. Watchdogs and civil society groups continue to monitor implementation, particularly regarding proportionality for smaller operators and safeguards for free expression.

The next phase of the Act’s rollout includes continued development of age assurance measures and mechanisms for handling content that may be harmful but is not illegal. How these provisions interact with freedom of expression protections will likely remain contested terrain. Parties developing manifesto commitments for future elections may face pressure to address concerns raised by the petition and its substantial public support.

For those tracking related UK policy developments, the government’s approach to Cost of Living Payments 2025 UK and How Much Is Stamp Duty UK demonstrate the broader landscape of domestic policy implementation during this parliamentary session.

Frequently Asked Questions