Keir Starmer said he would act in the ‘national interest’ when asked whether tech concessions are on the table to secure a deal to lessen the impact of Donald Trump’s tariffs
Keir Starmer said he won’t shrug his shoulders on online safety – but left the door open to tech being a part of trade negotiations with the US.
The Prime Minister and officials are locked in talks with Donald Trump and his team after the US President slapped 10% tariffs on all British imports into America as part of his “Liberation Day” blitz.
Rumours have been swirling that the UK is looking at cutting the Digital Service Tax in an effort to secure a deal to lessen the hit from the tariffs – which could amount to a tax cut for the world’s richest tech billionaires.
It has also emerged that the draft UK-US trade agreement reportedly contains commitments by No10 to review its online safety laws and digital competition regulations. It has triggered a wave of anxiety among online safety campaigners who fear children could be at risk.
READ MORE: Keir Starmer issues warning to Donald Trump over UK response to explosive tariffs
Speaking at Labour’s local election launch in Chesterfield, the PM said he would act in Britain’s “national interest” when asked if he could confirm whether carving-out tech concessions was on the table.
But he said tackling online safety issues was also in the “national interest” and referenced his recent backing of Netflix ’s Adolescence, which explores the impact of harmful material online on teens.
Responding to a question from The Mirror on the issue, Mr Starmer said: “We will act in the national interest, but when it comes to online safety, I’ve recently, even in the last few days, made it clear how important I think online safety is.
“We had a roundtable with the writer and co-producer of Adolescence on Monday.
“It was very powerful session, which reinforced yet again, the risks and threats of social media, particularly in that case, with young boys, young children, young people.
“And so, you know, there are issues of the Online Safety Act that are coming into force pretty quickly. They’re very important, and we need to look at whether there are other measures that we need to take in relation to online safety.”
He added: “But we’ll act, of course, we have to act in the national interest, but it’s also in the national interest to make sure our young people are safe when they’re online.
“And I think one of the reasons Adolescence was so compelling I think was that any parent or anyone with a relationship with a child, particularly a teenage child, would have felt very strongly that it exposed, quite profoundly, the risks and challenges and I don’t think we can shrug our shoulders, and walk past that and we won’t.“
Andy Burrows, chief executive of suicide prevention charity the Molly Rose Foundation, told The Mirror that parents will be “bitterly disappointed” by Mr Starmer’s comments. He said: “The PM had the opportunity to categorically rule out the Online Safety Act being on the table in a US trade deal and has failed to do so.
“Parents up and down the country will be bitterly disappointed and want a personal commitment from Keir Starmer that children will be safer on his watch. That means committing to strengthen online safety laws not be beholden to the demands of the White House.”
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