Rayner says Farage ‘failing young women' with plan to scrap Online Safety Act
The comments by the deputy prime minister are the latest criticism of Farage from the government, with Labour launching a parallel series of attack adverts on the Reform UK leader, including one showing him alongside the misogynist influencer Andrew Tate.
In a press conference at the end of last month, Reform promised to scrap the act, which had just come into force, saying measures intended to push social media companies to limit false and potentially harmful content would instead bring censorship and make the UK 'a borderline dystopian state'.
In response, the science and technology secretary, Peter Kyle, accused Farage of being on the side of child abusers such as Jimmy Savile, bringing a furious response from the Reform leader.
In comments to the Sunday Telegraph, Rayner highlighted what she said would be the risks of getting rid of the act in terms of clamping down on what is formally known as intimate image abuse, where offenders either upload intimate pictures or footage of others or else share them via other means.
'Intimate image abuse is a devastating crime and contributes to a vile misogynistic culture on social media that we know translates into physical spaces too,' Rayner told the paper.
'Nigel Farage risks failing a generation of young women with his dangerous and irresponsible plans to scrap online safety laws. Scrapping safeguards and having no viable alternative plan in place to halt the floodgates of abuse that could open is an appalling dereliction of duty.
'It's time for Farage to tell women and girls across Britain how he would keep them safe online.'
Labour is launching a linked series of online adverts against Farage, including one published on Sunday morning connected to Rayner's comments. 'Nigel Farage wants to make it easier to share revenge porn online,' it says, alongside an image of Farage grinning.
According to the Sunday Times, another advert will highlight Farage's comments about Tate, the influencer who, along with his brother, Tristan, faces charges in the UK including rape, actual bodily harm and human trafficking.
The two British Americans are under investigation in Romania, facing a number of charges that they deny.
The Labour advert shows Farage with Andrew Tate and the headline: 'Nigel Farage says Andrew Tate is an 'important voice' for men.' The comments come from an interview Farage did on the Strike It Big podcast last year.
Laila Cunningham, a former magistrate who has joined Reform, wrote a Telegraph article on Saturday in which she called the Online Safety Act 'censorship laws', saying laws already existed to combat 'revenge porn'.
'It's a cover for censorship, and an excuse to hand unelected regulators sweeping powers to silence views they don't like, while doing nothing about the real crimes happening on our streets,' she wrote.
Cunningham said minister should instead focus on detaining asylum seekers rather than putting them in hotels, saying that for now, women 'are being put in harm's way' as the asylum seekers could pose a risk to them.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
19 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Flags raised by patriotism campaigners removed by London council
A second council has vowed to remove English or British flags that have been attached to lampposts by patriotism campaigners. Tower Hamlets in east London said it would take down the St George's flags 'as soon as possible' after they were put up in recent days as part of the 'Operation Raise the Colours' patriotism campaign that has been gathering momentum online. It come days after Birmingham council ordered the removal of hundreds of Union and St George's flags flying from street lampposts in the city, which were raised in the past fortnight in a 'patriotic outpouring'. The Labour-run authority claimed the flags put the lives of pedestrians and motorists 'at risk' despite being up to 25ft off the ground. But Lee Anderson, the Reform UK MP, was furious, telling The Telegraph: 'This is nothing short of a disgrace and shows utter contempt for the British people.' British or English flags have been raised on streets across England including in Swindon, Bradford, Newcastle and Norwich. Now Tower Hamlets council, which is run by the pro-Gaza Aspire Party, has confirmed it will remove any St George flags from council property including lampposts 'as soon as possible'. A spokesman told The Telegraph: 'We are aware members of the public have been putting up St George's flags on various structures. 'While we recognise people wish to express their views, we have a responsibility to monitor and maintain council infrastructure. 'Where flags are attached to council-owned infrastructure without permission, they may be removed as part of routine maintenance.' Lutfur Rahman, the mayor of Tower Hamlets, ordered the removal of Palestine flags from council buildings and lampposts in March 2024 after Jewish families said the 'oppressive and intimidating' symbols made them feel unwelcome in the borough for the first time. Critics accused the council of 'two-tier bias' because the Palestine flags were not taken down for months after popping up in the aftermath of the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Robert Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary, accused Tower Hamlets council of 'absurd national loathing'. He told The Telegraph: 'Tower Hamlets council have allowed Palestinian flags to be publicly displayed on lampposts but not the flag of our country. 'This absurd national self-loathing must end. This is yet more two-tier bias against the British people. We must be one country united under the Union flag.' Sir Iain Duncan Smith, the former Conservative leader, asked: 'Why would we leave [Palestinian flags] up and take down flags that represent one of the countries of the UK?' Critics pointed out that Palestinian flags have flown elsewhere on the streets of the city, where 29.9 per cent of residents are Muslim, since the war in Gaza began in 2023. Suella Braverman, a former home secretary, said our national flags 'are a great source of pride and patriotism', adding that 'they should be flown from as many places as possible as often as possible'. Government guidance first published in 2021 states: 'Flags are a very British way of expressing joy and pride.' It goes on to say that: 'The Government wants to see more flags flown, particularly the Union flag.' The guidance warns however that flags must not 'obscure, or hinder the interpretation of official road, rail, waterway or aircraft signs, or otherwise make hazardous the use of these types of transport'.
BreakingNews.ie
an hour ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Donald Trump is ‘not a force for good' London Mayor says
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said he would be 'more than happy' to meet Donald Trump – despite warning that the US President could be 'inadvertently radicalising people' and is 'not a force for good'. Mr Khan dismissed jibes that President Trump made against him on a recent visit to Scotland, where he claimed the London Mayor was 'a nasty person' who has 'done a terrible job'. Advertisement The Labour politician said remarks such as those were 'water off a duck's back'. However, he told an event at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe it sometimes felt like he was 'nine years old again' and 'in the school playground'. Mr Khan, speaking at the Political Party show with comedian Matt Forde, hit back at the US President, saying: 'Somebody who has views like he does about black people, about women, about gays, about Muslims, about Mexicans, thinks I'm nasty. 'Really. He is the leader of the free world, arguably the most powerful man in the world, and really.' Advertisement He spoke out as he said that records showed since the middle of January this year – when Mr Trump began his second term in the White House – and July 'there have never been more Americans applying to British citizenship and living in London'. The Mayor said: 'So I think Americans have got good taste by and large.' He added that he hoped the President would come to London during his state visit to the UK next month, with Sir Sadiq stressing the 'diversity' of the capital was a 'strength, not a weakness'. Despite his comments about the US President, Sir Sadiq Khan said he would be 'happy' to meet Donald Trump (Jordan Pettitt/PA) Speaking about this diversity, he insisted: 'I think it makes us stronger not weaker, richer not poorer. Advertisement 'And when President Trump says some of the things he does, it brings from the periphery to the mainstream, views that are potentially dangerous. 'He inadvertently – I'm not going to suggest he does it deliberately – he inadvertently could be radicalising people with views that could lead to them doing things that are dangerous.' He spoke out about fears that minorities 'could be treated less favourably because of the views of the President of the USA' as he accused Mr Trump of 'using London and our diversity as a political football, as a proxy for a culture war'. The London Mayor continued: 'On a personal level, it is water off a duck's back, but we can't run away from the fact that there are some really serious challenges we face as a western society and President Trump, in my view, I speak generally, isn't a force for good.' Advertisement However he insisted that he would be 'more than happy to meet President Trump' saying he would seek to show him that it is 'possible to be proud to be a westerner and a proud to be Muslim, that it is possible to be British, and proud to be British, and be of Pakistani origin and be a law abiding citizen and we aren't three headed monsters'. The Labour politician said: 'I suspect President Trump may have formed a view of Muslims because of the actions of a small minority of really bad people who are terrorists and use Islam in a perverted way. 'What I would want President Trump to know is that is a very small fraction of Muslims across the globe. 'So if there was an opportunity to meet President Trump, I would be more than happy to do so.' Advertisement
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Don't cave to Putin, Europe urges Trump
Sir Keir Starmer and other European leaders will urge Donald Trump not to submit to Vladimir Putin's demands for more Ukrainian concessions. In a show of unity in the wake of Russia's success at last week's Alaska summit, the group will fly to Washington on Monday and attempt to stiffen US resolve in the peace talks. Alongside Emmanuel Macron, the French president, and Friedrich Merz, the German chancellor, Sir Keir will seek to minimise the risk of Volodymyr Zelensky being humiliated in the Oval Office again – as happened when he last visited in February. The European delegation – which includes Giorgia Meloni, the Italian prime minister; Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president; and Mark Rutte, the Nato secretary-general – will also push back on Putin's demand for Mr Zelensky to surrender the whole of the Donbas region, which is made up of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts in eastern Ukraine. But the Trump administration said a discussion about the future of the mineral-rich region was needed and insisted 'both sides' will need to make concessions. On Sunday, Mr Macron said the delegation's will was to ' present a united front between Europeans and Ukrainians ', warning Mr Trump: 'There is only one state that proposes a peace that would be a capitulation: Russia.' He added: 'If we are weak with Moscow, we are preparing for tomorrow's conflicts.' European leaders have not explicitly called for all of Donetsk to remain Ukrainian, instead saying it was up for Mr Zelensky to decide what to agree to on territory. Mr Zelensky pushed back on suggestions that he should be made to give up the entirety of the Donbas region, including land that Ukraine still holds. However, he opened the door to negotiations with Putin directly, saying any territorial changes should be discussed in a three-way meeting with the US. 'We need real negotiations which means they can start where the frontline is now,' Mr Zelensky said. 'The contact line is the best line for talking and the Europeans support this.' The Ukrainian president noted that the Russians were 'still unsuccessful' in Donetsk, where Ukraine holds 30 per cent of the land, and had failed to take the area in the 12 years that Putin had tried to seize control. The request for face-to-face talks with Putin, which Moscow has consistently rejected , appears to be part of a wider European strategy to show Russia as the obstacle to peace. In a joint press conference in Brussels on Sunday, Mr Zelensky and Ms Von der Leyen said Russia must stop attacking Ukraine before proper negotiations can progress, whether that is called a ceasefire or not. The message represented an attempt to counter Mr Trump's public declaration that all sides should end the focus on a temporary ceasefire and move straight to establishing a permanent peace deal. European leaders are wary of this position because it would allow Putin's forces to seize more Ukrainian land while talks were ongoing. However, senior figures in the Trump administration reinforced the president's desire for talks over territory on Sunday. Steve Witkoff, the US peace envoy who joined Mr Trump and Putin for talks in Alaska, told CNN: 'There is an important discussion to be had with regard to Donetsk and what would happen there.' Marco Rubio, who was also in Anchorage, told CBS News: 'To reach the end of this conflict, both sides are going to have to make concessions. That's just a fact.' The US secretary of state also backed away from previous US threats to sanction Putin if he failed to agree to a ceasefire, suggesting such a move would not keep him at the negotiating table. European leaders praised the Trump administration after the president promised security guarantees to a Western-backed peacekeeping force in Ukraine once the fighting has ended. Sir Keir and Mr Macron are leading a group of 30 nations dubbed the ' Coalition of the Willing ' offering to help protect Ukrainian freedom if a peace deal is struck. Under the plans, British military trainers and engineers would be sent into Ukraine alongside contributions from other nations after a ceasefire to rebuild the Ukrainian armed forces. European planes, including Royal Air Force fighter jets, would also police the skies to deter any invasion. Leaders have argued for months that the US would have to provide some form of security 'backstop' to make sure that in reality Russia would be deterred from attacking again. Some went public over the weekend thanking Mr Trump for supposedly offering 'Nato Article 5-like' guarantees in a call briefing them on the Putin summit. Article 5 is a clause that agrees an attack on one Nato member is considered an attack on all. Downing Street wants the White House to clarify what security guarantees it is offering, while Mr Macron said he would ask the US 'to what extent' it is ready to contribute. However, Sir Keir did not issue personal comments on Sunday, reflecting Downing Street's strategy of trying to influence Mr Trump behind closed doors rather than via megaphone diplomacy. Senior figures in Downing Street have expressed regret over what they consider to have been their failure to help Mr Zelensky prepare for February's ill-fated meeting with Mr Trump in Washington. Mr Zelensky arrived at the White House hoping to announce Ukraine had reached a minerals deal with the US. But his Oval Office meeting with Mr Trump descended into a shouting match after JD Vance, the vice-president, demanded that he show more gratitude after years of American support.
