§ John MannTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he is taking about UK Internet sites used as an incitement to paedophilia. [72701]
§ Hilary Benn[holding answer 24 July 2002]: Incitement to commit a particular offence, for example of child abuse or of a child pornography offence, whether on a website or otherwise, can be dealt with under existing law. The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) provides a focal point for reporting material which appears to be illegal. They assess the material and refer any they agree appears illegal to the police for investigation and the Internet Service Provider (ISP) hosting the material, in order that the ISP can close off access to the offending material. Where the material is produced or hosted outside the United Kingdom, arrangements exist for notifying the relevant law enforcement agency and ISP.
The IWF has also recently developed a policy on recommending ISPs to take down newsgroups that regularly contain, or whose names seem to advertise child pornography. We welcome this development and we will continue to monitor the position.
5WThe answer I gave to my hon. Friend the, Member for Scarborough and Whitby (Lawrie Quinn) on 16 July 2002, Official Report, column 230W, detailed the work of the Home Secretary's Task Force on Child Protection on the Internet, including its work toward developing new offences and models of good practice.