Tech giants have become so big that UK ministers are treating them like countries, with careful diplomacy. But that stance could be about to toughen
For a long time, Labour politicians have worried about a brash straight-talking unpredictable American billionaire wreaking havoc for them in government. They have imagined scenarios whereby they would wake to social media posts slamming members of the Government – and causing a daily media storm. In these scenes, it washas so far refrained from starting a war of words with the new Labour government, another Yank has stepped up.
As concerns grow over the role of social media in recent riots, the Musk – Starmer row is only adding fuel to the fire on the debate over how the Labour government should respond. It points to a bigger dilemma facing the Government – how to police big tech. “Social media is a sewer,” says a concerned Labour aide. X along with TikTok and Telegram have all been pointed accused of adding to thethrough the sharing online of misinformation and incendiary videos.
But as the week has worn on, increasingly ministers are looking at the steps they could take. The most obvious stop is the Online Safety Act – delivered by the Tories which doesn’t come into full effect until the Spring. If Musk continues to goad Starmer, could tougher punishments be needed? Under the current bill, tech companies could be fined up to 10 per cent of their global revenue if they fail in their legal duty to protect children while tech bosses could face jail time. However, this is still regarded as rather hard to get to. It’s why the idea of criminalisation is once again being talked about by some within Labour.
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