This petition was rejected

The Government e-Petitions Team gave the following reason:

A lot of material on the internet which causes shock and offence to some people is not actually illegal and, in this context, the rapidly developing phenomenon of “social networking sites” has presented real issues for responsible users. In the UK we support a self-regulatory model for the Internet industry and any Government intervention has to be light touch, very fast, proportionate and effective. Legislation can rarely adapt and change quickly enough.

The vast majority of the UK ISP industry takes a responsible approach to what content it hosts, both of its own volition and in co-operation with law enforcement and Government agencies. Where the industry is advised that content they host contravenes legislation, they will readily remove it. In addition, ISPs have contracts with their customers called good practice Acceptable Use Policies (AUPs), which they have recently strengthened, about what may be hosted on their servers.

Complaints about a particular website’s content should first be directed to the site’s manager. Most AUPs already contain a general clause which allows ISPs to remove sites or content which contain offensive or objectionable material, even if it is not illegal. Arrangements similar to AUPs apply to many websites, including social networking sites. Those people, who find user content offensive or suspect, should therefore report their concerns to the appropriate social network site.