Dáil debates

Friday, 24 January 2014

Report of Joint Committee on Addressing the Growth of Social Media and Tackling Cyberbullying: Motion

 

11:05 am

Photo of John O'MahonyJohn O'Mahony (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move:

That Dáil Éireann notes the report of the Joint Committee on Transport and Communications entitled, Report on Addressing the growth of Social Media and tackling Cyberbullying, which was laid before Dáil Éireann on 18 July 2013.
I thank the Ceann Comhairle and welcome the opportunity to outline the context, background and recommendations of the Joint Committee on Transport and Communications which were published last July following a number of hearings and engagements with and submissions by many of the stakeholders involved in this issue. It is interesting that in this morning's proceedings Members are moving from debating a Bill that refers to something that is outdated to seeking to catch up with the amazing progress made in how information is disseminated and so on. Essentially, that is what the report is about. I refer to the importance of reports from committees which have the opportunity to examine in more detail the minutiae of an issue than can otherwise be debated here. In the past reports were published by committees and forgotten on the day after their launch. In this case, I hope the report can feed into what is happening within all Departments. In addition, its purpose was to examine the issue in a cross-party way. I again refer to this morning's debate which at times appeared to be more about quangos and their removal than about the issue. The importance of having these debates in committees is that matters can be dealt with in a cross-party fashion and not treated as political footballs. This is to be welcomed and while the report is only one small feature within a wider political reform, nonetheless it is important.

I also welcome the presence of the Minister who has responsibility for this issue. Only last November, on foot of the joint committee's report, he established an Internet content governance advisory group under the chairmanship of Dr. Brian O’Neill of Dublin Institute of Technology who had made a submission on the joint committee's report last year. Underpinning the joint committee's recommendations was the need for a more co-ordinated approach to tackling the irresponsible online platform, consisting of experts in the fields of child safety and online behaviour, as well as technical and industry experts. This specialist working group is an important initiative and should have everyone’s support in carrying out its work.

It was recognised at the outset by everyone on the joint committee who examined this subject and those who made submissions that social media had enormous potential for public good and civic engagement and the committee’s primary concern was to ensure it did so without having an adverse impact on individual rights. However, because of the challenges posed by cyberbullying and online harassment, the joint committee decided to commence hearings on the challenges facing individuals, families, communities and schools from the rise of social media. In a digital age, as social media are changing the way many of citizens interact with one another, members thought it was important to examine the topic, particularly in the light of the disquiet expressed in some quarters that there were no curbs on the irresponsible use of the channels. The joint committee invited the social media platforms Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to make presentations. They engaged with members very constructively, as did the Office for Internet Safety, the National Anti-Bullying Coalition Ireland and Digital Rights Ireland. The joint committee also received a large number of informed submissions from individuals and groups.

One difficulty in dealing with this issue is that technology is changing and being upgraded so rapidly that by the time one problem is addressed, another presents in a manner not envisaged even a few months earlier. In other words, it is difficult to get ahead of the curve. That is the challenge in facing this issue. When he appeared before the joint committee, the Minister, Deputy Pat Rabbitte, pointed to other difficulties that presented on this issue, including the point that Internet governance had to be conducted on a multi-jurisdictional basis. In other words, the issue is both global and national and must, therefore, be tackled globally and across borders. The Minister also pointed to the fact that different Departments, as well as his own, namely, the Departments of Education and Skills, Children and Youth Affairs and Justice and Equality, all had different responsibilities and had been addressing them within their remit. I seek his views on how they can be co-ordinated more effectively. That is the reason for what I perceive to be the main recommendation made in the report. While the joint committee has made eight recommendations in total, the key recommendation is the sixth, that a single body be given responsibility for co-ordinating the regulation of social media. When there is a plethora of agencies and Departments involved, the danger is that those who are vulnerable will fall through the cracks and will not have knowledge of a clear pathway towards solving the problem. It was the view of members that the Office for Internet Safety did not adequately deal with cyberbullying or the traceability of tweets and other social media. That is not a criticism of it because it is not resourced to do so in the first place. Moreover, the office does not have a formal regulating role, as its primary function is to monitor the current self-regulating model agreed with the Internet service providers.

I will turn to the other recommendations. Despite age restrictions being in place by media companies, many children under the prescribed age are opening accounts on social media sites. The joint committee recommends that where this is identified, the relevant company be swift in closing the account. These accounts are often opened with the assistance of parents, sometimes unwittingly. The idea is that parents must be better informed and educated in a better way, including of their responsibilities in this area. The joint committee also recommends that the child protection guidelines incorporate guidance for all professionals working with children to aid them if they encounter issues relating to cyberbullying and the inappropriate use of social media. This includes all sections of the Garda, teachers, youth workers and so on.

Third, the joint committee recommends supporting and repeating the recommendations contained in the action plan on bullying and that the definition of bullying in the new national procedures for schools include a specific reference to cyberbullying. In addition, guidelines specific to cyberbullying should be put in place in order that school principals in dealing with instances of cyberbullying have a clear protocol to follow. In the course of its study the joint committee was given examples at first hand of the difficulties principals encountered in dealing with the problem. There was a time when bullying was confined within the school grounds and premises, but, obviously, cyberbullying is a 24 hour phenomenon. Bullying is not as visible as heretofore, which is the challenge in this regard. Moreover, the joint committee learned that cyberbullying in schools was not confined to students bullying one other.

In some cases it relates to students bullying teachers. The main difficulty principals had when dealing with it was to know how to get material taken down quickly. The damage done between its discovery and its being taken down - in some cases it is not taken down at all - is a great problem. The curriculum should incorporate education on social media. That may be in the social personal and health education, SPHE, course. With the new junior certificate course being planned it could be incorporated into that in some way. Parents, children and everybody involved are learning about this and it should be done at every level.

Referring to the fact that it seems to be more prevalent in the younger age groups, the Ombudsman for Children has described cyberbullying as one of the most prevalent forms of bullying experienced by children in Irish schools. Another report found that the incidence of cyberbullying among Irish teenagers is the highest in the EU, so it is a particular problem here. The next recommendation stated that employers should have a social media policy outlining what constitutes cyberbullying and what actions are to be taken if the policy is breached. We have seen cases of this within the workplace here.

What brought many of these issues to the fore in the first place is the link between cyberbullying and suicide, which, unfortunately, is very prevalent in our society. There have been a number of high profile cases of suicides especially among young people where cyberbullying has been suggested as the underlying cause of some teenagers in particular taking their own lives. However, our conclusion based on many people involved in this concurs with research in North America which found that cyberbullying is rarely the sole or main cause of suicide. It is important to realise that there are many dynamics in suicide. However, cyberbullying can be a contributing factor and have lasting effects resulting in distress, anxiety and low self-esteem.

In this context it is interesting to note how other countries have dealt with the link with suicide. Last year New Zealand introduced legislation which will create a new offence of incitement to commit suicide. The offender can be jailed or fined whether or not suicide resulted or was attempted. This could be considered for future legislation here. Earlier I referred to the difficulties in schools in particular. In the UK, school principals have a direct line whereby they can phone a person in an agency who can direct them on what is available to them or how they can deal with a situation. That could be followed here. This report does not have all the answers by any means but hopefully it will be a useful piece of work that will feed into the various actions that are taking place and decisions that are being made in the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources and other Departments. We need to see the positive use of modern technology but we also need to protect our communities, children and people from the dangers of the Internet.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.