UK Opposition Leader Calls On Government To Sanction Telegram

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 21st October, 2021) Leader of the UK opposition Labour Party, Keir Starmer, condemned Telegram for harbouring extremists and called on Prime Minister Boris Johnson to take harsh action against online platforms, including Telegram, for distributing videos calling for extremism, violence and racial hatred.

"As we were paying tribute to Sir David on Monday, Telegram users could access videos of murders and violent threats against politicians, the LGBT community, women and Jews ... Some of these posts are illegal, all of them are harmful ... Telegram has facilitated and nurtured a subculture that cheerleads for terrorists. Tough sanctions are clearly needed," Starmer said in his speech.

The leader of the opposition criticized the current government for not sanctioning the platforms that "are failing to crack down on extremism.

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Johnson responded that the government will try to bring the law before Christmas and will consider the possibility of tougher penalties for those who violate its provisions, adding that there will be "criminal sanctions, with tough sentences" for those responsible for allowing extremist content online.

"I've prosecuted terrorists and I've prosecuted extremists. We need to stop online spaces from being safe spaces for terrorists," Starmer wrote on Twitter later today.

On October 17, the UK Parliament paid tribute to David Amess, who had been a conservative member of parliament for 40 years, and was killed last week while meeting constituents in Essex.