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The Children’s Commissioner for England has urged peers to strengthen the Crime and Policing Bill to better protect children from the escalating risks they face online, warning that current legislation does not go far enough to address violent pornography, AI-generated abuse, and other emerging threats.
In a recent blog, the Commissioner highlighted the urgent need to close loopholes that expose children to harmful content long before they turn 18. She called on Parliament to back key amendments due for debate in the House of Lords, describing them as long overdue measures to safeguard children in a rapidly changing digital landscape.
She wrote that unregulated online pornography remains “one of the most serious threats to childhood”, citing her research which found that 70% of young people had seen pornography before the age of 18, much of it violent or degrading in nature. She added that it was “staggering” that DVDs and offline publications are still subject to stricter controls than online pornography that can be accessed with just a few clicks.
The Children’s Commissioner welcomed amendments that would bring online pornography in line with the regulation of offline content, ban depictions of strangulation and incest, prevent adult performers from portraying children, and introduce age and consent checks for performers. She warned that these changes are vital to prevent the normalisation of content that resembles child sexual abuse.
The Commissioner also raised urgent concerns about the rapid rise of AI-powered “nudification” tools. She said these tools “exist solely to harm women and girls” and called for them to be banned outright. Her recent research showed that the fear created by these technologies is pushing some girls to withdraw from online life altogether.
She expressed strong support for amendments that would ban nudification software and ensure that generative AI is properly captured by the Illegal Content Code and the Children’s Code.
The Children’s Commissioner emphasised that the amendments being debated represent a crucial opportunity to strengthen protections:
“These are not technical tweaks. They are vital safeguards for children growing up in an online world where violent pornography, AI-generated sexual imagery and dangerous AI advice are only a few clicks away. We must act to protect children today and in the future.”
She said that while the Online Safety Act introduced important protections, the pace of technological change means Parliament must go further to ensure that children are protected both online and offline.
